11 Branded Content Masterminds Who Are Elevating the Art of Marketing

Whether creating viral videos or bringing the potency of journalism to corporate content, each of the creators honored in this year's Adweek Creative 100 has elevated the art of branding through passion, craft and seemingly limitless talent. Learn more about their stories and work below: [kickout id="1" label="Karen X. Cheng"] Karen X. Cheng Founder, Butterbar The force behind San Francisco-based viral video agency Butterbar (now known as Wafffle), Cheng has a habit of creating fun and irresistible clips optimized for social media—like this year’s ad featuring a tiny rundown kitchen being beautifully remodeled, a promotion for home renovation loans from financial startup SoFi. Previously a program manager for Microsoft, a Silicon Valley designer and a startup founder, Cheng stumbled onto her current career path in 2014 when a marketing exec at Beats by Dre contacted her about a “donut selfie” video she had created for fun—and ultimately hired her to help turn the clever roundabout camera technique she invented into a sizzling ad for the headphone brand, in which she also starred alongside celebrities like Kylie and Kendall Jenner, Serena Williams, and Nicki Minaj. After landing that gig, Cheng incorporated her agency—rebranded Butterbar this January—in 2015. Her other credits include spearheading a clip last year about the dearth of strong female leads in traditional children’s books as a way to promote real-life role model anthology Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls. Describing the agency’s process, Cheng cites a blend that includes focused brainstorming around client goals, keeping up with viral video trends and rapidly changing social-media algorithms, and employing a methodical, analytics-driven approach to distribution. [kickout id="11"] “It's actually not about being the most creative,” she says. “It's about making something that could be disguised as something people would see in their Facebook feed anyway. Our goal is to make ads that don't look like ads.” —Gabriel Beltrone [kickout id="2" label="Jamal Dauda"] Jamal Dauda Global Head of Music, WeTransfer While transferring files might not seem like the most inspiring or creative part of making a song or a film, Jamal Dauda has spent the last year demonstrating the important role it plays on the file-sharing platform. Earlier this year, his team debuted a documentary starring musicians Courtney Barnett and Kurt Vile, discussing their friendship and their creative process that resulted in their 2017 album, Lotta Sea Lice. Dauda describes the documentary video as a "time capsule." After that came a video series starring Björk and others exploring the many parts of creative collaboration. [kickout id="12"] So why sponsor all this creative content rather than focus on showcasing the cloud-based business’s services? It often goes hand-in-hand. "I think the series is to show that creativity is much more than this big bang,” he says. WeTransfer, located in L.A.'s Venice neighborhood, resides at the intersection of tech and culture. Last fall, the company debuted a new mobile app to complement the desktop website’s tools for sharing projects. Currently, Dauda is working on a podcast that will debut this month, featuring conversations about the “nuts and bolts of creativity.” “What does creativity really look like?” he says. “A lot of other brands and makers of content are talking about creativity in a very general sense. ... It’s not always as simple as hopping in the studio and saying, ‘We made magic.’” —Marty Swant [kickout id="3" label="Devin Friedman"] Devin Friedman Founder, Wealthsimple Magazine After many years as an editor for GQ, Devin Friedman parlayed his storytelling talent into a job where he could further his ever-expanding creativity: multimedia journalism. In college, Friedman studied fiction but didn’t want to stay home writing alone. He became an award-winning journalist, writing for magazines such as Esquire, Rolling Stone and The New Yorker. At GQ, he wrote an Iraq war book and led the magazine’s video channel, where he developed Most Expensivest Shit with 2 Chainz, now a TV show. But he wasn’t done finding new, expansive creative outlets. Last year, Friedman joined Wealthsimple, a Canadian financial tech company, helming DGA award-winning ad campaigns, and establishing a Webby-finalist online magazine and video series. He is now exploring what a Wealthsimple podcast and print magazine could look like. Just don't use the term “branded content.” “Either it sounds and feels like an ad, or it feels creepily un-ad-like in a way that makes me feel suspicious,” says Friedman, who wanted to create transparent content, something he characterizes as “totally legit when it comes to being interesting.” For instance, in Wealthsimple’s interview series, Money Diaries, people tell their life stories through the prism of money. In one, Rachel Bloom shares her money made per episode of Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. In another, a nun discusses her vow of poverty. Other interview subjects include Aubrey Plaza, Solo star Alden Ehrenreich and ad icon Paul "Can You Hear Me Now?" Marcarelli. “The point of it is to be interesting and human about money,” says Friedman, “to make people feel like they're not alone and to maybe teach them something as well.” —Senta Scarborough [kickout id="4" label="Joseph Galbo"] Joseph Galbo Social Media Specialist, U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission Running “weird” Twitter accounts is a fine art. Wendy’s and Denny’s were pioneers in creating a connection between the humorous side of social media with the informative brand messaging that many companies want to push to their followers. Now it’s the government’s turn. [kickout id="15"] The Twitter and Facebook accounts for the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission are maintained by Joseph Galbo, former copywriter for McCann Healthcare and social media coordinator for the Liberty Science Center. Between detailed product recalls and warnings, the accounts also share hurricane awareness images using Shiba Inus or fire escape plan reminders using an abstract illustration with fluffy cats. They’re weird, they’re borderline baffling, and oodles of thought are behind them. [kickout id="13"] Galbo turned to David Ogilvy’s work from the 1960s as inspiration for the text-with-image template the CPSC accounts are known for, in addition to the entertaining photos and fonts. “We’ve really embraced the idea that everything in social media is temporary,” says Galbo, “and we’re all just living day to day.” With a communications team of 10 people, Galbo gives credit to his supervisors for approving posts and vibing with his direction. When trying to educate the public about everyday hazards, the accounts make sure the information is interesting, fun and relatable. [kickout id="14"] “People have expectations of what government accounts look like,” he says. "With us, they get something different. Our fans appreciate learning something and having fun while doing it." —Sami Main [kickout id="5" label="Yogiraj Graham"] Yogiraj Graham Global Director, Intel Creative Content Labs A veteran of agencies CP+B and 72andSunny, Yogiraj "Yogi" Graham is the production wizard behind some of Intel’s most visually stunning campaigns, usually centered on some mind-bending use of the computer giant’s cutting-edge tech. Graham joined the company’s in-house Agency Inside in early 2015 and rose to the position of global director of Intel Creative Content Labs last fall. One of his favorite projects from the past year involved breaking the Guinness world record for most drones flown simultaneously in an airborne light show ahead of the 2018 Winter Olympic Games. “It was emblematic of the collaborative approach that it takes between the business unit and the creative group and agency inside Intel,” says Graham. He’s also worked on such boundary-pushing campaigns as a reimagining of Shakespeare’s The Tempest with a digital-avatar lead for the Royal Shakespeare Co.; a demonstration of how Intel’s drones and an AI called the “Snotbot” can be used to analyze whale spray in partnership with Parley for the Oceans; and an AI-powered music video for Chinese pop star Chris Lee. Graham says his approach to creativity has evolved since he crossed over to brand-side advertising, where he now has the resources of one of the world’s biggest tech companies at his fingertips. “The technology that has been at the heart of the inspiration for many of the projects we’ve done has challenged me to think in a different way,” he says. “When you put the capabilities of a new technology first in a creative process, it can lead you to a place creatively where you haven’t been before.” —Patrick Kulp [kickout id="6" label="Bobby (Kim) Hundreds"] Bobby Hundreds Co-Founder and Chief Creative Officer, The Hundreds Bobby Hundreds strives to keep streetwear as relevant today as it was in the 1980s and ’90s. He makes casual clothing grounded in the world of skaters, surfers and hip-hop fans, and his success owes a nod to both street subculture and gonzo blog journalism. On his brand's site, TheHundreds.com, he seamlessly blends retail with content, with Hundreds himself maintaining a blog whose topics range from an interview with Garfield creator Jim Davis to a lengthy, personal treatise on the importance of diversity in surf branding. "I am, almost embarrassingly, one of those people whose lives revolve around surf. Who plans his family’s vacations around surfing, much to their dismay," Hundreds writes in the post, based on a speech he recently gave to the Surf Industry Manufacturers Association. "Yet, I’m also the guy who shies away from that ID: 'Surfer.' Surf is the axis by which my world revolves, yet I don’t feel a connection with any of the brands or markers that designate surf culture. This makes no sense to me. Especially as someone who designs apparel, whose life’s work is dedicated to tying communities to brands." The tenor of the post highlights how the designer, photographer, illustrator, writer and director has become both a brand builder and a brand activist. After last year’s deadly white supremacist riot in Charlottesville, Va., he tweeted: “Hey fellow streetwear brands. If today pisses you off, take that anger and energy and put it into your designs and messaging. Speak out.” He released free anti-hate T-shirt designs including "Alt Wrong," "Don’t Be a DICKKK" and "FKKK Off." In January, Hundreds teamed up with Yosi Sergant, the Obama staffer who helped create the "Hope" campaign, to launch Into Action, a social justice festival of art and ideas. The free event promoted “community power and cultural resistance” and brought thousands to Los Angeles for a weeklong pop-up art exhibition, music performances, panel discussions and activist workshops that included John Legend, Rosario Dawson, Shepard Fairey, underground artists and victims of police brutality. Hundreds co-directed his first documentary on streetwear, Built to Fail, in 2017. Next up: a memoir, This Is Not a T-shirt, to be published by Farrar, Straus & Giroux in late 2018 or early 2019. —Senta Scarborough [kickout id="7" label="Donna Lamar and David Lennon"] Donna Lamar and David Lennon Group Creative Directors, Vice Media When it comes to Donna Lamar and David Lennon, it’s a case of opposites attract. Lennon is immersed in knowledge of the space, while Lamar has the cultural expertise. After a stint at McCann, Lennon helped shape content studios at Bloomberg and The Wall Street Journal before joining Vice—attracted, he says, by the media company's balance of both brand and storytelling. For Lamar, who went from head of production to creative director at TBWA\Chiat\Day and then to content development studio Amusement Park before her most recent role as creative director for Twitter #Studio, she says, “My whole career has been about transitions.” While Lamar notes that she didn’t realize “how big a difference it would be going from Twitter to a media company” when she joined Vice this past fall, it opened up new possibilities while allowing her to fully tap into her versatile skill set. Vice recently launched a partnership with Geico educating viewers about filing taxes, which Lennon says was “the most difficult brief I’ve ever got.” The result: Vice’s Tax Spa, which Lennon describes as a “Westworld-like experience” in which participants were instructed on taxes during a relaxing spa experience. He says the project was a “breakout campaign,” with viewers watching on average “83 percent or more” of all four videos in the series. [kickout id="16"] Other work includes Vice’s Broadly female-skateboarding documentary series for Vans, an upcoming Most Unknown science documentary series and a star-studded homage to Aaliyah created in partnership with cosmetics brand MAC. “Every day we get a chance to work on so many different clients,” says Lamar, adding that she loves “the unpredictability of what we’ll be working on" and "looking for something that only Vice can bring.” —Erik Oster [kickout id="8" label="Jesse McMillin"] Jesse McMillin VP, Creative Director, Lyft Jesse McMillin thought he wanted to become a painter, but switched his studies to graphic design and art direction after an epiphany in college. “Early on, I had that typical crisis many creatives come across,” he says, “I can keep following my pure passion and my own work, but it’s potentially hard to make a living, or I could focus my energy creatively around things that are more broadly in demand.” That led to design and branding work for Nike in Amsterdam and then to helping Virgin America reinvent air travel in the U.S. He joined Lyft in 2014 and, over the course of his tenure, the brand has created a body of work he says has helped build its identity. That includes Lyft’s Amp device, which sits on car dashboards and changes color to match a customer’s app so they know which car is theirs and “[reinvents] the idea of the taxi light.” Most recently, McMillin led a visual refresh of the Lyft brand, creating a custom font, logos and color palette. [kickout id="17"] But despite all his branded creative work, he still paints. “For me, I kind of always need to have my own personal work. It’s a nice outlet from my other work and they inform each other,” says McMillin. “You can express or try things in your personal work that you may not be able to do in work for brands. But a lot of times you can take inspiration and push ideas you may want to bring to life commercially. You can experiment more.” —Lisa Lacy [kickout id="9" label="Dooley Tombras"] Dooley Tombras President, The Tombras Group If you’re on Twitter at all, you’re likely aware of brands engaging in playful online banter. When it comes to branded content, the tweeting of gentle teases and repartee among brands and their customers is the new normal. And among the most fun, witty and memorable practitioners is the MoonPie Twitter account. [kickout id="18"] Guided by Dooley Tombras, MoonPie’s sassy tone has differentiated itself from the pack, eschewing traditional marketing messaging. For instance, it tweeted: “It is the year 2032. Twitter has been abandoned except for brand accounts who continue to talk to each other and roast bots every once in a while.” Last year, MoonPie was named one of Adweek’s breakthrough marketers. The Tombras Group is MoonPie’s agency of record, and the social media team's irreverent and edgy tone has driven results. For instance, Tombras has built out the firm's “in-house content factory, design lab and social media command center,” while agency revenue has increased tenfold under his leadership. [kickout id="19"] The Tombras team has brought its clever communications to bear on such accounts as the national brand campaign for Orangetheory, a hyper-targeted boutique fitness company, and those of Maaco and Meineke. With marketers embracing the new frontier of social media in ever-changing ways, MoonPie is a bright example of how to gain customer attention and loyalty—though that's the kind of traditional corporate speak that would probably leave MoonPie tweeting “Lol ok.” —Sami Main [kickout id="10" label="Benjamin Von Wong"] Benjamin Von Wong Social Impact 'Artivist' Equal parts artist, activist and social media personality, Benjamin Von Wong has parlayed a knack for creating arresting larger-than-life visuals into a platform for advocating around social and environmental causes. To wit: a photo shoot this year turned thousands of pounds of discarded computer parts into stunning sci-fi backdrops promoting Dell’s electronics recycling program. [kickout id="20"] His hyper-real aesthetic often looks like it must be the result of computer magic, but it’s not. In 2017, his brand work included gravity-defying shots of sports-and-fitness-focused social entrepreneurs dangling off the edge of a 30-story skyscraper in Manila, captured live to promote the air-like qualities of Nike’s VaporMax sneakers. The accessibility of behind-the-scenes videos documenting projects like these—or his feature on the New York Harbor School’s Billion Oyster Project to rehabilitate the Hudson River around Manhattan—have resonated with a wide audience online, where he shows how everyday moments of hard work and perseverance (often with the help of sizable volunteer crews) can add up to a beautiful still. “I think with everything in the world being so ‘polished and perfect,’ getting a glimpse into the process of what it took to make things possible is where the new magic happens,” says Von Wong. And while Von Wong—formerly a mining engineer and currently looking to work with “triple bottom-line” companies—might easily be mistaken for a photographer, he describes himself as ultimately “more of an installation artist or set designer. The photography part of the project is ironically the afterthought—‘All right, I've done all the work—all I need to do now is make it look good.’” —Gabriel Beltrone Get to know the rest of Adweek’s Creative 100 for 2018: • 13 Global Agency Leaders Whose Ideas Go Beyond Borders and Transcend Boundaries • 27 Senior Agency Leaders Who Are Charting a New Course for the Creative Industry • 29 Rising Agency Stars Who Are Keeping Advertising Relevant, Fresh and Fascinating • 13 Celebrities Who Are Making Pop Culture More Innovative, Inclusive and Interesting • 15 Ad, Film and TV Directors Who Are Raising the Standard for Storytelling • 11 Visual Artists Who Enlighten, Inspire and Bring the Impossible to Life • 10 Writers and Editors Who Are Changing the National Conversation • Cover Story: Filmmaker Ava DuVernay on the Creative Process, and the Intersection of Art and Activism