Team Talk: Dan and Izzy
Dan Dean, Senior Digital Designer
So my story begins in the UK. Where my mum gave birth to me and I started in advertising. Give or take a few details. At my agency there, I’d often have a couple of vodka Red Bulls at lunch. Especially if the sun was out on a Friday (yes, it’s sometimes sunny in England) , we’d head to the pub at 1 and often stay until it was dark. Nowadays I don’t drink that much. I'll drink on occasions but am perfectly happy never feeling like I need an alcoholic beverage. Besides, I’m more serious about my training now and it’s probably not the best idea to be lifting heavy weights fuelled by vodka Red Bull. It doesn’t give you wings. I tried.
From the UK, I moved to Australia (give or take a few more details) and met Iz. I was already employed by Fenton Stephens as a senior digital designer when she walked through the doors as our new budding copywriter. From day one, Iz and I shared a common bond. Award School. We had both made it out alive. And now we’re like an undercover creative team. The advertising outlaws.
I’d been working as a digital designer for over a decade when I applied to Award School. I wanted to try something different and expand my skills. Why not?
It was a challenging but interesting experience, learning about new ways of thinking and having the freedom to be as creative as I wanted with each brief. Fun fact, I didn’t have a single drop of alcohol throughout the duration of Award School. So for those who don’t drink and worry about not fitting in, don’t. It’s not Mad Men. People don’t have bar carts in their office and have whiskey and a cigarette for breakfast. At least no one I know.
Fast forward to Award night and I was happy to see I got a piece on the wall. It happened to be my radio ad for the dating site RSVP. I'd never considered myself much of a writer other than being good with headlines and being a pun ninja level 9000, but now I know anyone can be a copywriter, it's easy. Over to you Izzy.
Isabel Evans, Copywriter (until Dan steals my job)
Dan and I aren’t your conventional creative team. In fact, we aren’t even officially a team—we just like working together. Since joining the advertising world late last year, I’ve never been officially married off. Because of this, I’ve had the opportunity to work with a whole bunch of cool people; young ones, old ones, art directors, copywriters, interns, experts. And Dan.
Dan and I completed Award school together last year, but we never actually met. It wasn’t until I strolled into Fenton Stephens that we caught each other’s eye and started having brainstorming seshes in the kitchen.
When I first got into advertising everyone told me to mentally prepare myself for the endless booze, raging partays and deadly hangovers (amongst the long hours).
As J-Kwon once said: Binge drinking is very bad. Yo I work in advertising though. (Or something close-ish to that). Which for sure, is true. But it’s not necessarily true for everyone.
Dan and I have never had a drink together. Dan prefers eating sweet potato, rice and mincemeat, three times a day. This is not a joke. I’ve seen him eat the same meal three times a day since the day I started. So rather than going for an afterwork bevvie, Dan and I will brainstorm over lunch as he gets shredded. On the other end of the spectrum, I’ve worked with people who love an afterwork beverage, people who need a lunch time tequila shot and even someone who drank a different kind of craft beer every day for a year.
So even though alcohol holds a special place in advertising, it’s definitely not the (only) fuel behind great ideas. In saying that, if you have any boxes of red sitting under your desk, feel free to send it on to us. We also accept sweet potatoes.
