In May 2018, I received a summer intern position as an Art Director at The VIA Agency, Portland, ME. Each intern is assigned a personal manager / mentor, someone to work under, who delegates tasks to them. My mentor assigned me to almost all of his client projects this summer. Clients included: Arm & Hammer, Klondike, L.L Bean, T. Rowe Price and Unum.
The following were my responsibilities as an Intern Art Director. I attended and participated in meetings pertaining to the clients my mentor was assigned to such as: "Kick Off" meetings; the briefing of a new client project. This is a great opportunity to ask questions essential questions about the project. POD Status meetings; weekly check-ins with all employees on the same creative team for that client. This is where Project Managers, Client Strategists, Planning, and Creatives all have the chance to briefly be in the same room so they can all come to a consensus of the next steps to follow on the project at hand. IR Check-In Meetings; Check points scheduled throughout the length of the project used to critique the work in progress. These meetings will also involve The President, Creative Directors and Strategy Directors. These meetings are also used to rehearse the presentation of the Deck presented to the Client. Throughout all meeting processes it is essential to ask questions and take notes of all necessary information about client projects.
Other responsibilities include participating in work-sessions with the creatives on the client's team, this is where a lot of the magic happens. We work with each other to hash concepts out, determining which are strong enough to live onto the next round. It was never out of the ordinary for a Copywriter to take a stab at visualizing a direction for a concept or campaign. Just as it was never out of the ordinary for an Art Director to brainstorm tag lines or for a manifesto. This overlap was encouraged rather, making this a great opportunity for me to sharpen my copywriting skills. When concepting with a team it's very important to work with each other and how to adapt to thinking and brainstorming methods; not being afraid to try something new and different than what you are used to. Being able to build with each other off of ideas is an experience that I find sensational. That is one of the biggest joys for me in this field; being able to work with a team formulating young idea, and watch it grow with finesse into a matured kickass concept. I have learned that I really enjoy collaborating with other creatives in the work place. It's a blast getting to know people, bouncing ideas off each other, and all around working towards something that is so much bigger than just you.
Yes, I still have more to say about being an Art Direction Intern (I'm almost done). My responsibilities also included comping / mocking up examples of deliverables for the project. Usually this included comping a print piece, a rip off video, or mocking up tangible items. Curating mood boards for potential concepts is also a task that I took on as an Art Director. It's important to show how a concept can be flexible without limitations and transcend. Mood boards also help visualize aesthetics at the same time.
L.L. Bean White Cyc shoot at Studio 1912, Westbrook, ME. Assisted on set for grabbing products out of the frame. Footage has been bought by Client and is used for end cards on T.V. slots.
Portland Schooner Co., Client. The interns attending a sailboat ride to experience the company fully before diving into work. It was essential for the creatives to take notes of the experience on the boat, and document through photography and videography.
The interns were also tasked to assist in decorating and planning for the Annual VIA Summer Party. Shelby Burns, Copywriting Intern, and I took on the task of creating a 3ft piñata of the VIA Logo.
