Embracing creative risks: It’s time for our industry to get comfortable with being uncomfortable
Sunday Gravy's Jack White reflects on the industry's tendency to play it safe, reminding creatives that "if an idea isn't scary, it's not an idea at all".
Have you ever sat in a creative review, biting your lip, as someone unveils an idea so outlandish it sounds like it belongs in a fever dream? Imagine getting pitched this film – it’s a wild sci-fi-drama-comedy mashup. Meet Evelyn, a laundromat owner who’s not just fighting the IRS but hopping through insane alternate universes. Imagine a world where raccoons control minds and hot dog fingers are the norm. Sounds like a script that got written on a bad LSD trip.
This is the premise of A24’s ‘Everything Everywhere All At Once’. Now picture how that script would go in a focus group? I know if I were in that focus group as a participant, I would look straight at the one-way mirror and tell the execs munching on stale pizza to play it safe – maybe opt for a ‘Seinfeld’ reboot instead. But here’s where it gets interesting. The Daniels, the creative geniuses behind this controlled chaos, faced scepticism from big names like Apple, Netflix, and Amazon. “It wasn’t the Apple brand,” Daniel Kwan observed, reflecting on their initial response.
The big streamers, armed to the teeth with data, couldn’t wrap their heads around it. “People didn’t know what to make of it,” says Khan. They clung to familiar grounds – hence the sequel swamp we’re currently wading through. But creativity isn’t about comfort. It thrives in the discomfort of challenge and debate.
It’s like modern advertising – a sea of sameness where the fear of the unknown often overpowers the thrill of the novel. Lee Clow, the legendary ad man behind Apple’s ‘1984’ Super Bowl commercial, hit the nail on the head: “Most ideas are a bit scary, and if an idea isn’t scary, it’s not an idea at all”.
The triumph of ‘Everything Everywhere All At Once’ rings true to this sentiment. Ignoring the feedback, the creators persevered and found a partner in A24 Films, diving headfirst into the bizarre and the risky. They didn’t just push boundaries; they vaulted over them, creating a sensory and narrative spectacle. This approach, daunting as it may be, is the key to breaking the monotony of ads plaguing our screens.
In both Hollywood and advertising, there’s a noticeable trend towards favouring the comfort of the familiar over original ideas. Most ads these days? They’re mainly echoes of what we’ve already seen. It’s almost as if there’s an unwritten, cosy formula that everyone’s embracing – because it’s familiar, easy to conceptualise, simple to write, and painless to approve. But this approach often leads to forgettable commercials which ultimately means money wasted.
So, as creatives and marketers, let’s challenge ourselves. Let’s step into the unknown, flirt with the ridiculous, and create work that captivates and resonates. Research and data are important, yes, but they should guide our creativity, not handcuff it.
The next time an idea makes you squirm, don’t throw it to the research wolves just yet. Embrace that discomfort, like A24 Films did. Who knows, you might just create something as memorable and entertaining as ‘Everything Everywhere All At Once’. And hey, if you haven’t watched it yet, it’s ironically now available on Apple – guess it finally became ‘on brand’ for them.
Remember, in a world where playing it safe is the norm, the bravest thing you can do is to be comfortably uncomfortable with your creativity.
Jack White is the Co-founder of creative agency Sunday Gravy. He is also the co-founder of Cuttable, a creative automation company.
I think you’re not separating ideas from execution, which is the biggest worry in our industry these days. Ideas can be incredibly safe and comfortable. For example, ‘Skittles brings unexpected fun to any scenario’. The execution of that idea, eg Skittles ‘touch’ or ‘plant’, that’s where the magic happens. I worry about any agency that says ‘be brave’ when buying an idea, I should feel incredibly comfortable with the idea if it has a drumming gorilla or not, because I can separate the idea from the execution.
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