‘It’s in our hands to proactively look for opportunities to drive change’ – Global Creative Director, Ignasi Tudela

Ignasi Tudela, Global Creative Director at Polaroid, joins our Craft – Photography Jury for the Dutch Creativity Awards 2021. With over 18 years of global experience in both traditional and digital media, Ignasi brings his wealth of creative knowledge to our panel this year. We chat with Ignasi about his creative mantras, how he deals with failure, and how we, in the creative industry, can help build a better tomorrow.

What are you most looking forward to as a Jury Member for this year's Dutch Creativity Awards? Will you be looking out for anything in particular?

I will be looking for work that makes me feel something. Work I can learn something from, makes me think, laugh, or cry. I will be looking for work that is not the easy type to pull off, but the one that breathes passion and grit.

What’s your ‘must see’ work from last year?

I think this work from beats is important to see. It is not only the relevance of its message. It doesn’t feel overproduced but feels considered and effortless at the same time. It shows the confidence of a company that knows the ground that it stands for and shows us how the brand is aware of its place in culture, underlining how companies today can’t be just about pushing products out.

From The Dutch Creativity Awards 2020, I really like these two projects: Victim Fashion and Printed by Parkinson’s. These two ideas manifest truly from a creative vantage point having to tailor all media and resources into the way they come to life to convey their message. I admire the courage and determination to bring these types of ideas to life, they are not the easy ones to pull off as there are many hurdles along the way.

Who is your current ‘one to watch’?

I don’t have idols. I love lots of different people’s work from multiple creative disciplines and across different industries.

What’s your biggest takeaway from last year?

The world is changing at a fast pace. Only brave ideas that add value can mean anything and therefore connect with people beyond ticking KPIs.

Who would you define as a creative visionary? What qualities should that person have?

I believe there are 2 types of visionaries. The ones whose drive and passion is to fulfil their ego. And the ones whose drive and persistence is to create something bigger than themselves, having a meaningful impact in people’s lives.

In terms of a creative visionary, any of the 2 mentioned above is a creative visionary. I guess you need to be creative to have a vision as vision is going somewhere nobody has gone before. The qualities? I think you must be an idealist with conviction and persistence, to know that where you want to go is somewhere worth going and stick to it.

Where do you seek inspiration from?

I try to be in a constant state of play so I can be open and receptive to signals, emotions and ideas anywhere and everywhere.

Do you have any creative mantras?

I matured as a creative at Wieden+Kennedy Amsterdam - from my early 20s to my mid 30s. I can’t help it but my mantras come from the experience of those years.

The Work Comes First.

Shut up when someone’s talking.

Don’t act big. No Sharp Stuff.

Walk in Stupid.

A white wall is a missed opportunity.

How do you deal with (the fear of) failure? Any tips?

The way I deal with failure is I see it as feedback and an opportunity to improve. For me, failures are steps that take you closer to fulfil the potential of who you are. I find joy in working hard as every failure is an opportunity to learn, develop myself and sometimes, when the team is strong and brains align, it leads to amazing things.

I think a good tip is to change your mindset. See yourself as a constantly evolving being that can cultivate and develop any skill you want to get into. Just takes time and lots of failures to get there.

What drives you to pursue your career goals?

To be the best version of myself.

How can we, in the creative industry, help to build a better tomorrow?

By listening to culture with our eyes open and our hearts intact.

I also think we need new generations to think strategically and not to get carried away with artistry. Craft is important in what we do and important to develop, our current society is more visual than ever so there is an appetite for making nice crafted things. But the danger is to lose our strategic value in the process. Our way to build a better tomorrow is to help companies with strategic ideas that can have a bigger impact, be proactive in pitching ideas that can drive the change we need even if the execution in the end is not tangible for your portfolio. If it is then even better.

I also think we need to continue looking at our industry and be conscious of our own impact and influence. Consider our footprint in everything we do and develop sustainable practices from a design and human perspective. We have the power to ask the right questions when we project ideas, design things and sometimes have the opportunity to make little changes that can have a bigger impact.

It’s an endless run, so it’s in our hands to proactively look for the opportunities to drive the change.

Best piece of advice?

I’m going to quote Mc Miller here - Loop, swoop and pull. How to tie my shoes.

Entries to the Dutch Creativity Awards 2021 are open until 25 June. For more info, check out our website.