Jon Finkelstein
As autumn finally started to fall in and the air got a little cooler, we were welcomed by a warm and energetic visit from Jon Finkelstein. A seasoned creative director and now Executive Creative Director at Mirum Agency in Toronto, Jon had lots of work to talk about. In addition to that, he gave us the scoop on the agency lifestyle he has settled into after around five years of copywriting. A drummer of 37 years, artisan, and all around radical guy, Jon taught us that you have to go above and beyond to be in the position he is in now, and that it’s sometimes appropriate (and hilarious) to cuss your heart out.
Leather Crafter
Writer
Member of 11 piece funk band, Community Soul Project
His LinkedIn reads
“Ultimately, I love advertising -- especially interactive. Not just what it can do now. But what it's capable of doing. It's just waiting for us to discover something new. It's also thrilling when our ideas drive business results. Which, after all, is what this advertising thing is about.”
Education
Appleby College - English Language and Literature
University of Toronto - Bachelor of Arts, English
University of Toronto - Master of Arts, English
Work History
Grip Limited | 2004 - 2013
Proximity Canada | 2013 - 2014
Mirum Agency | 2014 - Present
All About Mirum
Mirum Agency was born from Twist Image, an agency started by Mitch Joel, speaker, author, and “genuinely cool guy” as described by Jon. Twist Image was acquired by WPP and became Mirum Agency. What began as a 100 person shop in Canada became 2500 employees in 40 offices in 20 countries. Mirum describe themselves further:
“We are a global digital agency of makers, believers and make-believers. We create experiences that people want and businesses need. We are for those who embrace the transformative power of digital. We guide brands through our three offering platforms: business transformation, experience development and commerce activation.
We are Mirum. Let’s make what’s next.”
Jon broke down their three platforms and the services aligned with each.
Business Transformation - Transformation strategy, opportunity identification, new product development Experience Development (Design) - The more creative side of things, solution planning and prototyping, design and development, platform integration and management Commerce Activation - Campaign and media planning, campaign creation, conversion optimization and management
Mirum’s statement ends by saying, “Let’s make what’s next.” So what happens next? How do we [Mirum] make something remarkable? Mirum is a digital-first agency but it is not only digital. They start digitally, then work outwardly. At the agency, they do everything from huge web builds, brand identity, package design, eCommerce, high-end video, social media, content creation, pushing digital work into the physical world, and shopper marketing.
An example that Jon used to really explain how Mirum operates with an actual brand was with Adidas for their Avenue A concept.
Adidas Avenue A
Adidas came to Mirum and asked for them to pitch on a new product. Aimed at female urban runners in the US, Adidas wanted to hear how they thought it should be and how it should look. At the time, the agency didn’t have much information, not even a name. They came up with Avenue A, the intersection that is going to take you (the runner) on a journey of transformation. Avenue A is a celebrity curated box subscription, boasting it’s work with the likes of Rita Ora, Karlie Kloss, and more. Mirum’s role involved the identity, logo, packaging, brand video, among creating the idea and story behind the name. The brief was hard, as the clients themselves didn’t initially know what was going in the box. At most, they knew that it would hold a Stella McCartney bag, but the client wasn’t able to provide one to help with package design. The final design was a sleek, mysterious black box, with an incredible hit of colour inside correlated to it’s curator. This project presented a lot of challenges, but the company took it above and beyond, beyond the clothing and to an experience. This is the attitude that Jon encouraged us all to have when attacking a project.
In a geeky moment, Jon paused to mention the musically exciting opportunity he had when attending the shoot with Rita Ora in East West studios in LA. The room that they chose to shoot in housed the 80 channel Neve 8078 Console, the only one of that size specifically commissioned to record Michael Jackson’s Thriller.
Jon’s Mirum profile reads “Jon sits at the intersection of user-centric experiences, motivational design and emerging technologies. With over 18 years of experience, Jon’s impressive portfolio includes award-winning digital marketing work for the world’s most iconic brands, including VISA, Nike, FedEx, Budweiser, Johnson & Johnson, and many more.
As the Executive Creative Director at Mirum, Jon leads the creative team and integrates his innovative brand thinking across Mirum Canada offices. Some have labeled him a “results junkie” – a moniker he accepts with pride. Over his career, Jon has been responsible for winning several awards, including Cyber Lion, Clio, New York Festival, Digital Marketing Awards, and many best in shows.”
The Role of Art Director vs. Designer
The Art Director is the idea machine. They are up on trends and a “tasty, tasty problem solver.” They work on campaign work, establishing the look and feel, working with designers to execute. The Designer typically works on design systems. They do the big builds, complex UX/UI, “tasty tasty layout” - which is pixel perfect, knows tech/development well, acts as a small screen/responsive maven, and is NOT lesser than art director. Both are key roles, both are strategic thinkers. What do you want? What are your unique abilities? It’s up to you to make what’s next.
What do I look for in new talent (AKA how do you get a job)?
Jon is looking for a high-performance creative. It’s really hard to do good work and Canada has no money. Mirum doesn’t have big departments with a lot of people with specific skillsets. He expects you to be multi-faceted beyond what you are trained to do. Jon recommends having a diverse skill set and lots to offer. Being a great designer is only the cost of entry. CS suite ya of course, but what else can you do? What else do you love? Photography? Filming? Editing? Music composition? Set design? Product packaging? Brand identity? Bring all of your portfolios. What are you passionate about?
**Bonus skills that make you attractive: After Effects, Cinema 4D, Maya, Premier or Final Cut, Hacking, Raspberry Pi.
In the interview, Jon says to ask lots of questions like, “Who will be overseeing what I’m doing? What kind of resources do I have access to?” You have to do your research, and know who you’re meeting with. Most of your interviewers are interested in what’s in your other portfolio, and your personality once you get to the interview. On your online portfolio, make sure you have your phone number and email, not just a form to fill out. The same goes for LinkedIn.
His pet peeve: “Tell me again how you’re a lazy employee with a bad attitude but it’s the company’s fault.” Make yourself invaluable and you will be. Don’t be lazy, don’t ask for a raise or promotion. It’s about hunger and enthusiasm and being curious. You become a creative director by being one.
Above all, be interesting! Interesting people make interesting work.
After learning so much about the actual agency life and how to get the job we want, Jon took a moment to share some words of wisdom regarding life and creativity itself. The gist of the lesson was that you must let yourself take every opportunity and run with it. Do the best you can with anything you are given. Jon says, “Give yourself permission to try. Don’t be afraid to try.” I think that sometimes we can settle into this habit of knowing our niche and not venturing out of it, which means we can never be better than we are.
Jon’s talk left me with the attitude to reach for the stars. Do your best and don’t expect anything to be handed to you. Be prepared to do really awesome stuff and some stuff to pay the bills. Our world never stays still. Something new gets invented, made, and discovered every day, every moment. We are part of the change and we make the change.
“Be a meddler. Be interesting. Make sh*t happen.”
If you’d like to know more about Jon, check out his LinkedIn, Mirum Agency for future projects, see the Avenue A project in completion, and check out his funk band on Facebook!
Want to get in contact directly?
Send him an email at jonnogtv@gmail.com
Give him a call at 416-550-6844
