Barry and Damien O’Brien on finding Atomic 212’s ‘Territory flair’ in Darwin
Atomic 212’s Darwin office is 18-months-old, and Damien O’Brien is just six months into leading it. Here, he and his father, Barry, speak to Mumbrella’s Brittney Rigby about finding talent in the NT, injecting the agency’s eclectic personality into a new office, and being told ‘Mate, lose the coat, or we’re gonna kill ya’.
As soon as Barry O’Brien confirms I’ve started recording and we’re on the record, he turns to his son Damien and says, deadpan: “You’re out of the will.”
This dry humour – Barry quips he’s “still in counselling” when I ask how it’s been working with his son – punctuates our conversation. We’re in Atomic 212’s Walsh Bay office, the wharf levitating us above Sydney Harbour, talking about the agency’s presence in Darwin. And the Northern Territory feels, in every sense, very far away.
Damien (L) and Barry O’Brien in the foyer of Atomic 212’s Sydney office
“…founded the independent media agency in 2014”
I was working there in 2013…
Hi Rodney,
Indeed, my wording was not nearly clear enough. Barry founded D212 in 2014, which then merged with Atomic Search in 2016.
I’ve updated the piece to ensure that’s much clearer.
Thank you,
Brittney – Mumbrella
Mumbrella, please fact check.
Barry O’Brien was not the founder of Atomic. Far from it. He is a partner who was hired seven years after Jason Dooris, James Dixon and Kevan Baker founded it.
Here are some examples of employees who started at Atomic 212 before Barry O’Brien alleges he founded the agency:
James Shaw: 2013 (https://au.linkedin.com/in/shawnorthsouth)
Tom Sheperd 2012 (https://au.linkedin.com/in/tomjsheppard)
Andrea Altzori 2009 (https://au.linkedin.com/in/andreaatzori)
Kevan Baker 2007 (https://au.linkedin.com/in/kevanbaker)
Rory Heffernan 2010 (https://au.linkedin.com/in/rory-heffernan-159a18ab)
James Dixon 2007 (https://au.linkedin.com/in/james-dixon-23837b18)
Richy Quinn 2011 (https://au.linkedin.com/in/richy-quinn-8133b817)
Phil Reily 2013 (https://www.linkedin.com/in/phil-reilly-45997444)
And many more.
It would appear that the positioning in this article is that Barry O’Brien founded the agency. The truth is Atomic was founded by passionate friends many years before Barry was invited to join.
This is not cool but not the first time I have heard this false claim.
The chronology of partners and shareholders at Atomic is as follows:
1-3. Jason Dooris (media and creative), Kevan Baker (e-Marketing), James Dixon (Digital)
4. Mark Addy – Creative Director
5. Claire Fenner (media)
6. Barry O’Brien (above the line media)
Barry O’Brien was partner number 6, seven years after the agency was founded.
Hi there,
Indeed, my wording was not nearly clear enough. Barry founded D212 in 2014, which then merged with Atomic Search in 2016.
I’ve updated the piece to ensure that’s much clearer.
Thank you,
Brittney – Mumbrella