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Tekle Mamaladze

Tekle Mamaladze is a Georgian art director that keeps us all awake at night by counting endangered animals to not fall asleep!



Interview with the 2022 MUSE Creative Awards Winner - Tekle Mamaladze

1Please give us a brief bio of yourself and your creative background.

If you are reading this, I’m already dead…

serious about advertising.

Hi, I’m Teko & I’m from Georgia (no, not the State) the Country. I am officially an AD but secretly a CW lover as well & I love solving problems with humour.

In 2008 I enrolled in Miami Ad School Europe for the Art Direction program and after that, I have been travelling and working in all these amazing agencies all over the world. I started my career in one of the biggest agencies in New York - 360i, after that I moved to Toronto in the best and most award-winning agency called Rethink. Then I started working in Wunderman Thompson Tokyo, and today I am working in my home country in one of the leading agencies - Leavingstone.

Because of all these experiences I have tasted different flavours of advertising. I have seen some interesting insights and all the differences and similarities between European American and Asian cultures.

2What made you become/why did you choose to become a creative?

We are all creatives in a way by our nature, some of us just embrace it more than others. Since I was a child the thing I loved the most was thinking. I loved observing people's behaviours, emotions, why do they do what they do... and then I found out that these things have an actual name and they are called insights which are used in advertising. So basically I turned my hobby into a career.

I think that in a world where you can be anything, it is pleasure to be your true nature, which is - creative.

3Tell us more about your business/company, job profile, and what you do.

I am an Art Director which means that I am obsessed with thinking about new ideas and transforming these ideas into visually appealing products.

4What does “creativity” mean to you?

Creativity for me means a true, most honest nature of a human being itself.

5To you, what makes a “creative” idea and/or design?

An idea is creative when it makes you feel something in your body and your mind. It is all connected to emotions and an amazing idea or art always makes you feel somehow. These feelings might be different and unique but you always know that it is creative.

6Tell us about your creative and/or design process.

When I am working on a brief I always keep in mind that it is for someone out there to use, so I try to imagine the person who would use this product and start living in their shoes. I try to imagine what my day would look like, what would be my problems or what would make me happy, and what is the product that I would love to use and then I just make that product.

7What's your favorite part of the creative process and why?

When you think of an idea and right at that moment you know it's a good idea because you have this feeling of happiness in your brain.

8Congratulations! As the winner of the 2022 MUSE Creative Awards, what does it mean to you and your company and team to receive this award distinction?

Winning the 2022 MUSE Creative Awards indeed means a lot to me! It is reassuring for me that I am on the right track and also gives me the motivation to create more quality work.

9Can you explain a bit about the winning work you entered into the 2022 MUSE Creative Awards, and why you chose to enter this project?

While we are counting sheep to fall asleep, counting endangered animals make us stay awake. Reason 1 is that because the number of endangered animals is not enough to be able to fall asleep – we quickly run out of animals to count and reason 2 is that it is horrifying, so it makes us stay awake at night.

I entered this campaign because I believe in its strength, it is built on a very strong insight and at the same time is very simple to understand.

10How has winning an Award developed your practice/career?

Awards are always interesting and eye-catching for your potential employers. But besides that, It is very important for your confidence and motivation.

11What are your top three (3) favorite things about our industry?
  1. This industry for me is very close to psychology and figuring out what is going on in people's minds which I love.
  2. You can use this platform to channel your humour in very interesting ways which I enjoy.
  3. You get to think a lot which is my favourite thing to do.
12Where do you see the evolution of creative industry going over the next 5-10 years?

I have thought about this topic a lot and the answer I always come up with is that advertising is slowly transforming to the entertainment industry which is way better than just selling stuff. So I hope I see more of that in the future.

13If you were a student entering this industry or an aspiring MUSE Creative Awards submitter, what advice would you give them?

Just do it.

14What resources would you recommend to someone who wants to improve their skills in the creative industry?

live!

Explore this life fullest because that's how you get creative.

15What is your key to success? Any parting words of wisdom?

Embrace your weirdness!



Winning Entries

Insomnia | 2022

Insomnia

While we are counting sheep to fall asleep, counting endangered animals make us stay awake at night.
(read more at MUSE Creative Awards)

Tekle Mamaladze

Tekle Mamaladze is a Georgian art director that keeps us all awake at night by counting endangered animals to not fall asleep!


In an effort to save the current wildlife today alongside with the WWF, Morris Animal Foundation US is also doing the same. View the interview with Carol Borchert here!

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