BECOME AN
ART DIRECTOR
LIVE ONLINE COURSE ON BRINGING YOUR CREATIVE VISION TO LIFE- Develop and distill creative briefs to facilitate clear communication of the creative processes
- Create mood boards and style guides to reinforce the essential elements of the visual brand identity (VBI) and the campaign
- Apply PR hooks to build viral campaigns and win earned media for their project
- Develop 360-degree (integrated) ad campaigns to influence the audience across a wide variety of media platforms
LIVE ONLINE COURSE ON BRINGING YOUR CREATIVE VISION TO LIFE
DATES:
7 FEB 2023 - 16 MAR 2023
DURATION:
6 WEEKS
TUESDAYS & THURSDAYS
5 PM PST / 8 PM EST
Learn how to create campaigns strong enough to stand on their own.
Viral advertising creative Roberto Platas of Commonwealth//McCann shows you how in 6 weeks, live online.
THIS COURSE IS FOR
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YOU'RE MAKING THE LEAP TO ADVERTISING
Struggling to get value for creative and design briefs? Have endless creative ideas but no idea how to use color, typography, and composition to realize them? You’re in the right place.
Learn the method behind generating big creative ideas and expand your portfolio with a complete, integrated campaign.
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YOU'RE PROVING YOUR CREATIVE POTENTIAL
You already did school, so why do you still feel like a freshman? Crank up your creative power with the creative strategies used by McCann, Socialize, and Arnold Madrid to make magic happen.
Go inside the process of viral advertising production step-by-step. Learn how to get your ideas heard. Think of this course as the brief for your first serious advertising job.
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YOU'RE A FIRST-TIME CREATIVE LEAD
Developing your own creative ideas was definitely your vibe, but now that you're in a management position, you've found that bringing together a whole team's creative ideas is actually hard.
In this course, Roberto breaks down production of creative assets step-by-step. You will also work in teams to develop creative materials, enhance presentation skills, and practice giving constructive feedback.
YOUR ASCENT STARTS HERE

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You heard "inspiration" is the secret to successful campaigns?
Not really. Learn how to do the work behind the campaigns that everybody's talking about: briefing, ideation, technique, and collaboration.
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Let's get real about how a lot of online courses leave you hanging.
This course keeps it practical and includes a professional review of all your coursework.
Since you're learning live, you'll build connections in the industry, including with an acclaimed art director. So there's that.
ABOUT THE COURSE
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TELL A STORY How do you get from a brief to a big idea? Or from a big idea to the campaign you've imagined? Learn the creative problem solving strategies that Roberto Platas uses every day in works that receive international awards and attention.
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GO VIRAL Learn the new rules for advertising and start winning earned media for every campaign. Find out top secrets of award-winning agencies for helping their clients go viral, then make creative assets for your own campaign.
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GET HIRED Make your online portfolio stand out with fresh creative assets and professional guidance. Roberto will also teach you how to maintain consistency in your personal brand and seek out agencies that best fit your style of work.
INSTRUCTOR

ROBERTO
PLATAS
- Executive Creative Director at Commonwealth McCann Global Team
- 20+ years of experience in leading international teams developing global campaigns and local activations at McCann, Socialize, and Arnold Madrid, award-winning agencies in USA, UAE, and Spain
- Recognized for his work on top brands such as Chevrolet, Mercedes Benz, General Mills (Betty Crocker, Green Giant, Haagen-Dazs and Nature Valley), Coca-Cola, Philips, Huawei, Vodafone, Volvo, and Real Madrid F.C., among others
- Launched his career as an art director at McCann, developing concepts and campaigns for Coca-Cola, Yellow Pages and Opel
- Earned a series of awards and coverage in major industry media outlets for integrated campaigns for the United Nations and Coca-Cola
ROBERTO PLATAS COURSE INTRODUCTION
SYLLABUS
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01
TUE (2/7), 5 PM PST/8 PM EST
What is Art Direction?
Start your journey with an inside view into a day in the life of an art director at an ad agency and the key skills required for the role.
- Art director vs other creative roles
- Art direction in advertising vs other industries
- Essential skills and standard tools
- Creative sources of inspiration
Assignment #1: Find 1-2 sources of inspiration, such as other artists or art blogs, and add them to the shared creative inspiration sheet. Try to think outside the box and avoid Instagram, Pinterest, and Behance.
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02
THU (2/9), 5 PM PST/8 PM EST
The Creative Process in Advertising
Learn about each step of the creative process to develop an advertising campaign, from an art director’s perspective, and the types of insights that inspire great campaigns.
- What is an ad campaign?
- Types of media channels
- The creative process from start to finish
- Case studies: Top ads in different categories
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03
TUE (2/14), 5 PM PST/8 PM EST
The Brief
Gain hands-on experience in the first stage of the creative process: the brief. You’ll learn about the importance of a good brand strategy and unique insights, and how to apply these to the creative process.
- Unique selling propositions, target audiences, and brand-defining ideas
- Asking the right questions
- Sources of inspiration
- Cliché vs trend: tropes to avoid
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04
THU (2/16), 5 PM PST/8 PM EST
Concepting
Learn how to identify the difference between a cultural insight and an idea and practice how to concept creative ideas quickly.
- Good ideas vs great ideas
- Proof of execution: print, social, TV, film, OOH, activations
- How to use the concepting techniques
- Case study: Classic techniques and best-in-class work
- Workshop: Brainstorm responses to the brief
Assignment #2: Review a new brief for an ad campaign and generate 3-5 ideas. Write these up in a white paper or keynote slide.
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05
TUE (2/21), 5 PM PST/8 PM EST
Concepting 2.0
Use your new concepting skills as an art director to create story-driven ideas. Discover more concepting techniques and common pitfalls when coming up with unique creative ideas.
- Getting out of a rut
- Crafting a compelling story
- Award-winning campaigns
- Case studies: Classic techniques and best-in-class work (continued)
Assignment #3: Continue to revise ideas and craft executions in your campaign. Come up with 1 lead idea and mock up 1-2 print executions you feel strongly about (either on paper or through digital software).
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06
THU (2/23), 5 PM PST/8 PM EST
Feedback and Mentorship
Feedback is an important part of the creative process. Learn how to give, receive, and handle feedback and critiques from different sources.
- Efficient feedback methods
- Providing feedback to your team
- Mentoring other creatives
- Receiving feedback from your clients
- Workshop: Break out into groups of 3-4 to pitch lead ideas and give feedback as a group.
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07
TUE (2/28), 5 PM PST/8 PM EST
Making Ideas Presentation-Ready
Put your skills into practice by creating presentations designed to sell creative work.
- Elements of a good deck
- Translating your ideas into design
- Building brand identities
- Case studies: examples of VBIs
Assignment #4: Use the feedback gained in last week’s workshop to improve your assets. Build a 3-5 slide presentation, including a mood board and style guide, to sell your creative idea to your coursemates.
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08
THU (3/2), 5 PM PST/8 PM EST
Pitching Your Idea
Learn how to pitch ideas to leadership and sell good creative work to clients.
- Making good ideas great
- Selling to a client vs selling to your boss
- Presentation framework
- Finding your signature presentation style
- Workshop: Break out into groups to practice your pitch. Be prepared to share your deck with others.
Assignment #5: Course Project: 360°Ad Campaign
Continue to craft and shape your lead idea by revising mock-ups, refining copy, and pushing executions to be more creatively engaging. Submit a slide deck with a 360° campaign, including human insights, the idea name and write-up, 1-2 print ads, at least 1 additional execution, a mood board, and a style guide.
Extra option: feel free to build out the campaign for your own case or brief. -
09
TUE (3/7), 5 PM PST/8 PM EST
Craft and Production
Take a look at how creative ideas come to life in front of a consumer and examine campaigns crafted by some of the best in the profession.
- The importance of craft
- An art director’s role in the production process
- Creating a PR hook
- Case studies: Great PR campaigns
Assignment #6: Create a PR headline for your campaign based on the example discussed in class.
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10
THU (3/9), 5 PM PST/8 PM EST
Collaborating with Other Creatives
Learn how to work with other creative professionals, both inside and outside of the agency world.
- The role and function of a creative leader
- Working with other artists
- Pairing with a copywriter
- Departments in an ad agency
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11
TUE (3/14), 5 PM PST/8 PM EST
Building Your Portfolio
Find your own style and start building your personal portfolio as an art director in advertising.
- The Cannes Board format and examples
- Building a digital portfolio
- Approaching a portfolio review
- Common traps that recruiters see through
Assignment #7: Review your portfolio and identify areas for improvement. Add your course project to your portfolio if it’s ready.
Submit your portfolio for review and comment on what has been or should be improved (extra credit).
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12
THU (3/16), 5 PM PST/8 PM EST
Networking and Interviewing
In this final class, you’ll gain practical tips on how to network with industry professionals and practice tried and true interviewing techniques.
- Career path options
- Interview tips
- Networking
- Creating a bio for yourself