Who am I to judge?

But apparently, I can!

Honored to be part of the shortlisting jury for this year's Kidlat Awards. 

Watching and judging all the entries reminds me of my days of a young creative. And seeing the work showed me that creativity can really come from anywhere.

Sometimes, being judgmental can be fun.

Market Dynamics

One of my favourite parts of advertising work is going on-field and seeing how real consumers interact with our brands.

Haven't done that in a while, so it was great that we were invited to our client's wet market roadshow in Pasay yesterday.

As expected, it was loads of fun. From the games to the interaction, having this face-to-face encounter beats any type of desk research.

We should do this more often.

Cats know

For some strange reason, I always see cats like this every Monday:

Yup. They definitely know what Mondays feel like.

Mood

While we were at the office as early as January 2, today is actually the official work day at the office.

And seeing this cat outside our building pretty much sums up how everyone at work feels.

No time for cat napping thought. 

It's a new year.

Time to hustle!

Creativi-tree

After a year of work, productions, work, pitches, rushed work, and more work, it's finally a wrap for the creative team this year.

From our creative family to yours, Merry Christmas!

Silver linings

And just like that, our agency celebrated our Silver Anniversary.

Congratulations, Catalytx!

Here's to the next 25 years.

This means war!

During last week's 4As meeting, there was an interesting discussion on using AI for design, with some of the best Filipino graphic designers as speakers.

This is definitely a hot topic these days since a lot of creative processes are being taken over by AI. From finding visuals, to creating layouts, to manipulating images - things that Art Directors and Graphic Designers usually do. 

So, the burning question is, will machines replace people in design?

The consensus is "no." Because good design needs soul and culture - things that machines can't replicate. Right now, at least.

So, we're safe. 

For now, at least.

Meal with a view

It's been a while since my last Tagaytay trip.

Thanks to an ocular meeting a week ago, was finally able to have lunch with this view again.

Tagaytay never grows old.

Tapsi-Truvy

An important realisation on the 1st day of work:

Lyli hasn't tried Rodic's TapSiLog yet.

Say no more:

We went to the nearest Rodic's so Lyli can sample the restaurant that sustained me and other UP students during our Diliman days.

As expected, they did not disappoint.

This really is the taste of nostalgia.

Flying Coach-ella

And the parties continue.

Tonight we had our office Christmas party! 

Since there are a lot of Gen Z-ers in the agency, we thought of a theme that's both relevant and appealing to them.

Yup, we had a Coachella Christmas party. We brought the music festival vibes and reminisced about concerts we attended and festivals we want to catch in the future.

Thanks to our Admin and the ChrisComm for making the 2nd to the last party of the year very festive.

What's the Bus?

I'm so fortunate to work with and be surrounded by very creative people.

On a daily basis, they showcase their creativity with the amount and kind of ideas they come up with and present. But in special occasions, they show off their creativity even more.

Just like during our anniversary parties.

The team conceptualised, designed, executed and set-up with Mardi Gras bus. And it was the centerpiece of the celebration.

People were amazed at the scale of this installation. They couldn't resist taking photos with and in it, which is understandable.

You can really find creativity everywhere!

High on "Gras"

After 4 years of absence, our Annual Anniversary party is back!

This year, our theme is "Mardi Gras," so everyone dressed up in their best NOLA attire.

We missed dressing up. We missed partying. We missed getting together with clients, partners and industry friends. 

We missed this!

And we're on a high because we finally get to continue this tradition.

Cap it off

Oh, the things you find when you rummage your old stuff.

It gave me such a thrill to find this:

My McDonald's cap!

This was my cap during my crew days at McDonald's Commonwealth in college. It still has a lot of the pins I collected from contests, milestones, awards, and the like. Back then, collecting pins were all the rage, and it's so great to see that my pin collection (some of it, at least) is still there.

This re-ignited my wish to be a crew for the day, yet again.

Highlighting creativity

Seeing ads like this reaffirm my passion and love for this industry.

It's so simple, clever, and more importantly, the product is at the centre of the concept. Which is what real creativity is all about.

This is definitely one of those "I wish I made this ad myself" moments.

New Heights

Despite the fact that I've been with the company for more than a decade, this is the first time I'm seeing this view.

Apparently, we have a balcony that faces Emerald Avenue!

Despite the height, I'm finding this view quite relaxing.

Ah yes, you learn something new everyday.

Learning from friends

It's the 1st day of the ASC seminar on self-regulation in the advertising industry. It's a 2-day learning session which aims to broaden the knowledge of advertising practitioners on the importance of self-policing.

And as the seminar started, the opening video featured one of our good friends - Nonna! She's really one of the pillars in the Philippine ad industry.

With that as an opening salvo, looks like we have a very fruitful 2 days ahead.

Ming's mood

Saw this cat outside the office building.

Since it's the 1st day back at work after a 4-day weekend, I think a lot of people are sharing this cat's mood for today.

When work follows you around...

Literally!

This is one of the projects the team worked on for one of our clients.

We dressed up the Robinsons Supermarket robot and did the video that’s playing in its “face”.

And it followed me around during my grocery run.

Maybe it recognized me.  

Perking up the office

Call it "adulting" or just being a "Tito," but I'm finding it extremely gratifying to regularly fix up our little coffee corner at the department.

So far, it's effective in making the team a bit perkier than usual.

Water the odds

We were busy shooting inside the studio.

We could hear the strong rains outside, but it wasn't strong enough to be a concern.

We stepped out during a break, and we saw this:

And to think we just went out to go to 7-11 about an hour ago.

That was quick.