Andre has worked in Tokyo (TYO-ID), Stockholm (Farfar) and Vancouver (Blast radius) before starting Grïngo.

Enjoy!

Farfar Academy Interviews Andre Matarazzo from Ola Persson on Vimeo.

What’s important?
What’s working?
What’s not?
What do you think about the examples?
What’s your all time favorite?

http://www.hm.com - Spring Fashion ‘09
http://www.bjornborg.com - In Action
http://www.uniqlo.com/merino/
http://www.uniqlo.jp/uniqlock/
http://www.net-a-porter.com

Agencies
Daddy – Creative Partner and Co-founder
Daddy Identity – Co-founder

So first thing first, when was your point of no return, when you decided this industry is something for me?
I’m not sure that I still have decided if it is. When in school I wanted to do children’s multimedia for a living. The first big project I did (1997) was a multimedia CD-ROM about a sausage. A sausage company put the CD-ROM at their sausages, sold over 50 000 units and I realized that multimedia for advertising purposes was something with huge potential - and creating them could be a great job. I was a vegetarian back then, though. So I guess that was my point of no return.

Mother, Farfar and Daddy, seems like the advertising industry is a big family. Tell us why you’re named Daddy?
After the all dot.com-craze in the late 90’s, I guess there were a lot of people that wanted to work in a less heriarcic and down-to-earth environment. The names might reflect that. Or it might reflect that all agencies are psycotic.

Since we’re students we like to hear your approach upon education. Everyone seems to be self taught in the online industry. Is education a waste of time?
I’m self taught, and just like you say, that is not very unusual in our industry. But the main reason for that is probably that there wasn’t any good alternatives around in the mid 90’s. And also: At that time, the competition wasn’t very hard - you could basically know a little HTML and get a great position anywhere. Today it’s more competition, what we do is more important to the clients and therefor it demands better educated people.

Important to point out, though, is that being an entreprenorial spirit always helps to make a career in advertising.

What makes a good web creative?
Being an entrepreneur. The best creatives approach a company’s problems like they were share owners.

Winning awards, who benefits the most of it?
1) The company behind the award show
2) The jury members (jury sessions are the most effective education you can get)
3) The agency
4) The creatives
5) The client
6) Society (because it makes the industry to think about quality)

Is there any fast lane to success, crazy clients, loads of money and kick ass creatives?
Yes, but only Nicke Bergström knows about it.

Short or long deadlines? Will an idea be better if you have lots of time?
Short deadlines to nail the idea. Long deadlines for production and making adjustments.
A web site or a banner will be better the more versions you make of it - but an IDEA for a web site or a banner will not be better the more versions you make of it.

Daddy seems to representing the west coast both in Sweden and the US. Is it a strategy of yours to keep the other “Swedes” out of the way?
No, we just love to live where there are harbours and trams.

What is the best thing right now?
The remix culture. Every good idea comes in 10 versions these days, isn’t that great?

Proudest moment for Daddy?
I’m proud every day. But one very nice experience was when we helped Faktum (the homeless people’s paper) to survive when they had troubles paying their bills etcetera. We were several companies and individuals that reacted very fast and helped them. They have been doing great since then.

The traditional agencies are starting to slowly catch up in the online area. Will we see creative interactive agencies picking up the offline work as well?
Yes, they already do. But don’t tell anyone.

How do you start your day on internet?
Checking my mail on my iPhone on the tram to work. Then looking out of the window enjoying the view of the harbour.

If you wasn’t a part of Daddy, where would you like to work?
As a tram driver. Or in the harbour.

Itunes or Spotify?
I have both, seldom listen to any of them. At work I’m listening to collegues and clients, and then when I’m home I listen to vinyl or play my accordion (or listen to my kids singing, yelling, screaming).

Latest Youtube clip you sent to your co-workers?
It was a classic, “fainting sheep”. I don’t remember why, though.

Well, that would be all for now, thanks for your time Gustav. And keep up the good work being Swedens finest on the west coast.Thank you - the same to you!

Interviewed by Linda L

Can twitter help us stop this, so we can go on living like we’re used to?

Be sure to check out the reactions on twitter and use the hashtag #fadebate1 to participate.

We managed to get hold of Fredrik Heghammar at Perfect Fools Stockholm, one of many cool production companies that started in Sweden and that help agencies around the world execute their ideas to perfection.

Perfect Fools also has offices in Amsterdam and New York.

Previous agencies
Framfab, Abel&Baker – Project Leader
Lowe Tesch – Project Manager
Garbergs – Web Director
Perfect Fools – Project Leader, Managing Director

So, I saw at your LinkedIn that you moved on to be the Managing Director at Perfect Fools Stockholm. Is there any change in the office to come?
Yes I did, we have worked a lot on PF’s structure to achieve even more room for freedom and great ideas.

So tell us little about your background and how come you ended up in this industry?
I’m the moped driving, arty musician guy ending up as a jet engine technician just because it was handy to combine with all playing in the late -80’s. In -96 our band got an manager who took care of everything for the band so my of stage situation became really dull. I quit the job and ended up at a Dartotek where I did a webpage for a guitar store, I was really amazed by what you could do with internet and in the middle of everything I got the opportunity to go to a multimedia school (Capital School of Multimedia). That was the start…

In the online industry a lot of people are self taught, what is your opinion about education VS no education?
You need both worlds, if you are good you’re good no matter where you got your education.

Though Perfect Fools is a production company, how much are you involved in coming up with and developing ideas with the agencies you work with?
A lot I would say. We have a really good relationship with our clients so we are always welcome to contribute to make an idea better.

In this business it’s important to be innovative and deliver new and groundbreaking stuff. How do you at Perfect Fools convince the client to pay for something they’ve never seen before?
We work hard to keep everyone involved on the same track during a production. We have some methods and “tools” to show the steps towards the end product.
But in a way our clients have already made the first step into the experimental world by choosing us as a partner, innovation is our middle name.

How do Perfect Fools look at the award winning criterias? It’s always the agency that win the awards rarely the production company. Is it unfair do you think?
In a way it’s not fair, but if you want to play you have to follow the rules.

Tell us some of the best moments in Perfect Fools history?
The Grand Prix we won together with Forsman & Bodenfors for the AMF campaign last summer was such a blast! Both the prize itself and the fact that the whole PF crew from all 3 offices were together down in Cannes celebrating!

Is there a perfect dream client or brand that you wish to work with?
The fact is that I have had the pleasure of working with a lot of my dream brands already and for me the idea is more important then the brand or the client.

Right here, right now, which campaign or what piece of work are you impressed by at the moment? You are not allowed to pick one of your own.
The story of Anvil, http://www.anvilmovie.com/

What do you think will happen the upcoming 3 years, any big changes to expect in online advertising? Will we witness the banner die?
I hope the banner doesn’t die, but I do hope the current formats and the “not so creative” media agencies die soon. There is so much you can do out there, don’t let them stop you!

Since a fool can’t be all work and no play, what was the latest humor/youtube email you sent to your co-workers?
The giant dead snake. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ckscMng3L4w

What do you do to keep your different offices together?
We trust each other.

Which book is laying on your bedside table?
Small Giants by Bo Burlingham

Any last words?
Don’t forget why you are doing what you do, and make sure you enjoy it.

Thank you Fredrik for taking your time. Keep up the good work!
Thanks.

Interviewed by Linda L & Cat