The Best Creative Directors as seen from my position. (A squeaky swivel chair in Room 203 on The Bill Bernbach Wing , North corridor.)
Creative Directors have enough on their plate trying to keep their jobs without giving their time to help me keep my post.
Without the support, advice and free chocolate Hob Nobs from some of the UK's leading creative demi-gods, The Watford Course would have folded up years ago. It's not my place to cast judgment on CD's creative work or their agency's output. I can only judge their generous spirit and fervent passion for our work at Watford.
Some distinguished Creative Directors won't reply to my letters/emails. I find this strange, paricularly when their creative departments are staffed with more than a sprinkling of our graduates.Oh well.
Here are the ones who recognise that by helping Watford they are helping the Advertising Industry to secure the best creative talent out there.
Here are my top 10 chart positions and my reasons why. Last year's position in brackets
1 (1) Dave Trott.
If Dave Trott was a band he would be The Ramones.
He has more energy than the entire back catalogue of Joey and the boys.
His energy in a workshop is tangible as he runs through a set list which comprises every conceivable marketing and creative principle known to adman .
His mantra of 'Radical Reasoning' is like having your very own focus puller in the brain. At the end of a Dave Trott workshop all those fuzzy creative and strategic thoughts all become aligned to pin-sharp definition.
Inspirational. Charismatic. Caring. Above all, Dave is genuinely passionate about helping young creative talent develop their ability. The day Dave retires will be a sad one for all of us in advertising. And particularly sad for the future students of advertising. Irreplaceable.
Dave has run workshops for Watford for the past 20 years.
He will always be number 1
Dave in action, January 2010 running a masterclass which started at 6.00pm and finished at midnight!!!
1b Gordon Smith.
Gordon loves his ski-ing.
A few years ago he was in France at the top of black run on a beautiful spring morning. He wiped his goggles, pulled his bobbly hat over the peaks of his ears and stared at the icy ravine below him.
He then took out his mobile phone and called the office to set our students a brief.
Okay, I made up the bit about the hat. A diamond .Enough said.
2 (2) Trevor Beattie
One day I received a letter out of the blue from Trevor.
It simply said, ' How you doing Tony?. Is there anything I can help you with.?'
In all my time at the college I had never received an unprompted letter from a Creative Director to offer support.
Why would they write to me?
They have clients to keep, and creative teams to manage and inspire. Being a Creative Director is a big job.
Trevor is different. He knows how hard it is at the grass roots. He knows we need help.
He hasn't forgotten what it's like to be young and struggling.
He knows that the students are working 12 hours a day. 7days a week with the added pressure of a £14,000 Uni debt.
After reading his letter I did what any self respecting tutor would do.
I bit off Trevor's hand off for help. He and his wonderful teams have been helping us ever since.
It is no coincidence that when Trevor launched BMB he did it with a Watford Team, Pat Burns and Gavin McGrath. He has since hired 5 more of our teams to his creative department.3 (13) Yanny Elliott
When Yanny said 'If you want any help Tony just let me know and I'll sort it', I knew he meant it.
If I asked him to be at Watford to make toast for the students he would probably decline. However, he would send us the best toast maker in London.
Yanny is a former student and I have known him since he was knee high to a D and Ad pencil. He's compassionate and like Trevor Beattie, he respects his past and his student days. It is no coincidence that in recent years WCRS have snapped up some of our best teams as soon as they have left the college portals.
We've benefitted from dozens of workshops , talks and free markers from Yanny and his teams. He's also stuck his credit card behind the bar for us on a number of occasions. Yanny is a big supporter of Watford and we love WCRS.
4 ( 17) Gavin Gordon -Rogers
I am a 52 year old technophobe who recently traded a black and white TV to buy a TV /VHS combo.
When people say keyboard to me I instantly think of Rick Wakeman playing 'Fanfare for the Common Man' at Croyden ice rink.
Gavin has become my touchstone for new media.
He has organised brilliant workshop days, crits and has provided creative mentors for our course.
He's a lovely chap who always makes us feel welcome.
He treats the students as professional out -of -work creatives not students.
( I'm having difficulty programming my new VHS and as Agency Reublic is round the corner from where I live I wonder if Gavin would......) .
5 (9) Flo Heiss
Another digital guru.
I met Flo 6 years ago when his creative partner and Ex -Watfordian James Cooper invited us in for a workshop day. Flo is one of those disarming, charming , witty blokes you meet and instantly want to take home and wrap up for Christmas. Also, we share the same admiration for Brian Eno, which is good enough for me.
Since James left Dare to work in New York, Flo has kept the Watford flag flying.He has given up his time to 'brief and critique' my students on many occasions. He has given many Watford students their first job and he continues to be a source of inspiration and support for our course. Recently, Dare hired another Cooper, Brian, another Ex Watford. He also hired Mike and Sam in September 2009 straight out of college. Thanks Flo. Thanks Brian.
6 ( Joint 76th) George Prest. DLKW.
A meteoric rise up the table to 6th place. George wrote to me recently to say he would move heaven and earth to help the course. He ended up moving a lot of chairs, tables and bottles of wine so we could have our graduation event at DLKW .
George awarded the Diplomas, shook hands with lots of people and said a few words of encouragement.
Here's George with Liz and Bonnie Harold during our graduation night in November 2009.
Joint 6th Dave Dye
Dave is without a shadow of a doubt the best art director in the U.K.
No one comes close. For me, the one thing that sets Dave apart from other top art directors-he is so incredibly humble and generous.
For the last two years I have taken my students to see him for a master class in art direction and design.
His mild manner and sheer passion for advertising is palpable.
Dave's every word is softly spoken and hangs in the air for a second before coming to rest in the warmest, snuggliest part of the brain where we keep our happy moments.
Dave exuding inspiration from behind the student with the purple hat.
7 (27)Tom Tagholm. 4 Creative, (Channel 4 )
Tom, along with Richard Burdett MD and Ed Webster Head of Traffic, have been instrumental in providing us with some of the most exciting days of the Watford calendar. Tom is an excellent critiquer of student ideas and is a natural educator.
Tom, Ed and Richard have opened the large glass doors at Channel 4 and have kept us busy with creative workshop days where the students have worked to live programme briefs.
The C4 boys have also hosted one of our more memorable and rousing nights; The Watford Graduation Ceremony in 2007.
Tom and Ed have awarded freelance work and jobs to our students and I'm very proud of the fact that we are involved with such talented people.
8 (8) Paul Gayter. Creative Director , Brainwave, Washington USA.
Paul Gayter is a genius. Many people have the job title 'Creative' They write appropriate ideas for the briefs. Only a handful of people on this planet are blessed with minds that are truly on a different creative leyline.
Paul has a creative idea every 7 seconds.
His mind works in ways that astounds me.
And he sees a creative opportunity in everything around him.
Most of his ideas are rubbish .
The ones that are not rubbish are pure unadulterated genius.
He set up washing machines to wash celebrities' clothes and created art works from the the fabric left in the washing machine after the final spin cycle ?
A range of gravity defying furniture for kids called Funiture?
A range of original and funny greetings cards based on The Tarot?
Not to mention his award winning advertising campaigns he has worked on in the USA.
When Paul came over to England for two weeks he spent more time at Watford than he did with his own family. And he loves his family dearly.
He is one of only three people who have helped to define me as a tutor. And I am indebted and thankful that he became my friend as well as a mentor.
9 (31) Sam and Dave, Leanmeanfightingmachine.
They set a live brief.They took a student idea. They turned it in to an award winning piece of advertising. They invited the student team to the Grosvenor House to pick up the gong. The work was regarded as one of the best pieces of Digital Advertising in 2008 .
They gave the credit to the Watford team !!!
Now tell me , who in their right mind would do that ?
Also, Sam and Dave's 1968 hit, 'Can't You Find Another Way?' on Atlantic records is a favourite on my Spotify jukebox.
Sam and Dave are the most confident, ego-less, talented, humble creative directors I have met in my 20 years at Watford. Long may they remain so.
10 (19) Dave Buonaguidi.
I was terrible at languages so forgive me in thinking that 'Buona guidi' means 'Good Guy' in Italian. If the translation is accurate then I can't think of a more appropriate surname for this genial, genuine ball of creative gentleness.
If the translation is not accurate then I am a delusional rabbit.
We have a terrific relationship with Karmarama. Dave gives placement space to our teams. He's always interested in the work we do and he has been a big hirer of Watford talent over the years. He treats me with respect and I know that if I wanted to call on him for help he would be there. With a ping- pong bat in his right hand.
Bubbling under the surface.
Seb Royce, Glue.
Graham Fink M and C Saatchi.
Paul Brazier . AMV.
Kate Stanners Saatchi and Saatchi.
Andy Sandoz Work Club.
