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JWT global creative head Matt Eastwood says Australian ad industry more supportive than US

Eastwood

Eastwood

Australian adman Matt Eastwood, who is chief creative officer at JWT has said Australia is a more supportive creative community than the US.

The former DDB Australia national creative director, who was appointed to the global role with JWT in June this year, told US trade magazine AdWeek that his “biggest pet peeve” about the US industry is its lack of community support.

“That we are kind of down on each other, which I find frustrating. I don’t know if it’s an American thing or not, but in Australia, there’s definitely an advertising community that all supports each other. In Cannes, you see Australians celebrating other Australians winning, which is great. I would love to see that more in the U.S,” he said.

Speaking on his goals for the next 12 months in the new role, Eastwood said he hoped the agency would believe it could do more and hopefully it could do better at the Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity.

“To have instilled a belief in the agency that we can push ourselves harder than we ever have before and a desire to want to do that. Right now probably some people look at where we are and think, “Well, that’s where we are because that’s who we are.” I always believe that you can be more than you are just by applying passion. And I don’t know if it’s going to be in time for 2015, but I would like to see us do better at Cannes.”

Eastwood moved to the US in 2010 to take on a role with the DDB New York office.

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