127: The current state of creativity in advertising with Alex Jenkins, Contagious

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This week, we went meep meep past Contagious HQ to catch an ACME wielding Alex Jenkins.
As Managing Partner at Contagious, Alex’s industry knowledge encompasses a treasure trove of past campaigns, current narratives, and future predictions. Part editorial, part consultancy, part research, Contagious believes in the best version of our industry, one where creativity wins.
After trying to crush us with a Greco-Roman catapult, Alex talks to us on his wonderfully wiggly career path, having his marketing budget poached by Girls Aloud, feeling like Wile E. Coyote after education, Contagious as a triaging function, walking around a problem, the current state of creativity, anti-creative forces, Most Contagious 2023, David Lynch, and French supermarkets.
That’s not all folks, he also explains what we've always known deep down...that Les Binet and Peter Field are one of your 5-a-day.
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Here’s Contagious
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Go gorge on our episodes with Bob Hoffman and Richard Huntington
Here’s the ad by Ruavieja
And a clip of Angelo Badalamenti explaining how he wrote the Twin Peaks soundtrack
Timestamps
(01:44) - Quick fire questions
(03:04) - His first jobs, music, creativity, and feeling like Wile E. Coyote after
(09:25) - Having his marketing budget stolen by Girls Aloud
(10:45) - His role at Contagious, triaging, and how they stay objective
(16:49) - The state of creativity in advertising, anti creative forces, and why Les Binet might be one of your five a day
(30:40) - Most Contagious 2023
(38:40) - Listener questions
(46:46) - 4 pertinent posers

Alex’s book recommendations are:
R.U.R. by Karel Capek
The Human Use Of Human Beings by Norbert Wiener
Essays by George Orwell
Invisible Ink by Brian McDonald
Lynch on Lynch by David Lynch
Good Strategy Bad Strategy by Richard Rumelt