Dream Teams: Indian Food, Aguardiente and Reggaeton
鈥淚t's not every day you come across a fellow Colombian in a place like Dubai, but it turns out Colombians are everywhere,鈥 says associate creative director Silvia Carreno Vera, describing how she and fellow associate creative director Camila Venegas Gomez first met.
鈥淲ho鈥檚 this person that looks like the cool character from a movie directed by David Fincher and Tim Burton? I wanna be her friend,鈥 was Silvia鈥檚 first thought about Camila, and the other way around, Camila鈥檚 thoughts went to, 鈥淲ow, this lady really loves aguardiente and has a lot of energy for lots of activities in a day and long night parties 鈥 let鈥檚 see if I can catch up without dying.鈥
Discovering similar interests in eating arepas, Indian food and drinking aguardiente, the pair鈥檚 shared love of partying, food and drink turned into 鈥渁 mutual passion for creativity and big ideas," forming a solid friendship. 鈥淲e began working together when the opportunity at M&C Saatchi came knocking - Camila was building a team and needed a writing partner, so we decided to put our heads together and see if we could make some magic happen,鈥 Silvia says. That instance occurred two years ago and it鈥檚 felt like both lots and hardly any time has passed since.
Recounting the first project they worked on together, Silvia says, 鈥淚t was a nightmare. The good thing is it wasn't because of us as partners. On the contrary, it was the first time we realised our ability to generate great ideas quickly, giving us hope to continue producing better work.鈥 But Camila鈥檚 first thoughts turn to the project that was most significant to her, Burger King鈥檚 鈥楢s Good As The Original鈥 spot:
鈥淭he process was a mix of fun and stress, with ups and downs and sleepless nights. We found ourselves rewriting the script for the 10th time on the plane, just a few hours before the shoot. It was an incredibly challenging experience that pushed us to grow personally and professionally in unimaginable ways. And every step of it was absolutely worth it. It鈥檚 still one of our favourite projects up until now.鈥
As a copywriter-art directing duo, it isn鈥檛 just the mix of skills that makes the pair compatible. As Camila explains, 鈥淲e complement each other because we are good in both aspects, and our common skill is the conceptualisation of ideas.鈥 Silvia also agrees with this and mentions how the crux of their partnership is improving the other鈥檚 work and catching any missed details. 鈥淚t's a continuous learning process, and one of the reasons we complement each other so well is our openness to growth.鈥
But wait, it doesn鈥檛 always come up smelling like roses. 鈥淎lthough we have great chemistry, we are two different people,鈥 says Camila. 鈥淚 can鈥檛 stand Silvia鈥檚 ringtone and she doesn鈥檛 like my dance moves, but our differences and disagreements on the creative process are what makes our work more interesting.鈥 And of course, the creative never suffers, according to SIlvia, 鈥淭here are things during the process we might disagree on, the good thing is that we know that鈥檚 part of the process so we always figure it out.鈥
Together, Silvia and Camila have a tried and tested approach to getting through any disagreements that may occur. They say, 鈥淲e bring a lot of our personal lives into our work, for example, some of our characters' personalities blur the line between reality and imagination, much like our own lives. We also bring our emotions and experiences to the table, using them as insights for our work. Our approach is to find humour in everything, to the extent that if we don't take things too seriously, it becomes therapeutic. This human perspective allows us to approach every project with a fresh and creative mindset.鈥
Most of all, having someone to bounce ideas off of has many benefits, especially when it鈥檚 a trusted partnership. To them, as Camila puts it, 鈥淭he best creativity comes in the most unexpected moments; fuelled by shared experiences and the simple act of spending time together during lunch breaks and over a few drinks.鈥
Silvia agrees, 鈥淲hen you reach a stage where you can wholeheartedly trust and rely on another person, it unlocks new creative territories and ideas that would be hard to explore without the depth of knowledge and understanding that comes from a strong partnership.鈥
Sharing the experience of working together to create the 鈥楽orry You Couldn鈥檛 Make It鈥 films, with Saad Shehzad joining as director, the duo found a story-worthy anecdote from the process. As they battled the low budget with powerful concepts and channelled creativity to produce effective storytelling methods, it seemed like the duo couldn鈥檛 do anything without each other鈥 not even when it came to winding up in the hospital.
鈥淏oth of us ended up at the hospital after shooting this film! One was bitten by a dog, and the other fell dramatically at the hospital鈥檚 parking lot while carrying too many coffee cups,鈥 shares Silvia. But in the end, the project wound up a success, winning a Bronze at Dubai Lynx and proving to them that they could do it, despite budget (and health) restrictions.
From this experience, being adaptable and taking things in their stride are things they continue to enforce today, especially as they tease a new project they have in the works. Silvia says, 鈥淓ach project presents its own set of intriguing challenges, but the latest one was the amusing discovery that seagulls migrate from the Middle East when temperatures soar. Yes, smart birds. While we can't delve into further details about this particular project, it serves as a testament to the multitude of external factors that continuously test our creativity and execution.鈥
The main inspiration for both of them comes from gaining personal experiences in different aspects of life, understanding them and seeing how these can resonate with the human experience. 鈥淲hat truly resonates with people and how your ad can put a smile on their face,鈥 says Camila, when getting into the nitty gritty of what they aim to do. For Silvia, this comes from the random conversations which pop up with strangers and make her think about how that can be adapted into something magical.
Working together, SIlvia has learnt 鈥減atience and obsession with details鈥 from Camila, and Camila has sat back to admire the 鈥渞esilience, perseverance, and kindness鈥 of her colleague and friend. While Silvia is always updating her friend on the latest reggaeton hits and seems to have a reference point for every piece of work, Camila brings her 鈥渢oughness and caring nature鈥 into the mix. All in all, though they grew up in the same country, their upbringing and personalities are certainly different, bringing a fantastic balance to the partnership.
Silvia leaves us with this: 鈥淚'm very happy with the decisions that brought us together and proud of all the hard work we've been putting in. Our aim is always to bring more great ideas to life, but even if we don't, I'm grateful that I've found an 鈥榦scurito no tan oscurito鈥 [dark not so dark] creative soulmate for life.鈥
