Strategy‘s Creative Report Card is back – this time with fresh perspective. We’re diving into the minds of the CRC’s top creatives and strategists to explore how they work within their craft and think about the future of advertising. Over the next week, we’ll spotlight the Top 5 individuals across the CCO, CD, AD, CW, Designer and Planner lists through bite-sized Q&As that reveal their creative processes, industry predictions and working philosophies, among many other things.
Today we’re looking at this year’s Top 5 Art Directors. Earlier this week, we shared insights from the Top 5 CCOs, CDs, Planners and CWs. Visit our CRC website for all the lists and check back tomorrow for more.
#1 AD: Zachary Bautista, Rethink
What campaign(s) landed them on the CRC:
“Heinz Ketchup & Seemingly Ranch,” (image below) “Heinz Can’t Unsee It,” “Smack for Heinz,” “Slow this ad,” “Heinz AI,” “Heinz Tattoo Label,” “Heinz LVII means 57” and “It Has to be Heinz” for Kraft Heinz
What part of the creative process do you secretly love, and what part still tests your patience?
“To move at the speed of culture you need to move at a breakneck pace. As hectic as it is, I love making reactive work – it’s fast, a little jazzy, and you have no time to overthink it. Oftentimes with culturally relevant ideas you run the risk of being late to the party, if you wait for everything to be perfect and launch a month later the world would’ve moved on. At Rethink we embrace a “go-then-grow” mentality – get the thing out there in the world and extend from there.”
What recent work pushed you creatively, strategically and even emotionally?
“The ‘Heinz Ketchup & Seemingly Ranch’ campaign was a testament to the trust the Kraft Heinz team and Rethink have together. We launched with a limited number of bottles to test the waters of the name change and by the time Walmart reached out we were ready with enough bottles to put on shelves nationally – essentially becoming a soft relaunch of an existing Heinz product, Kranch.”
#2 AD (tie): Kaycee Diaz, Dentsu
What campaign(s) landed them on the CRC:
“Inflation Cookbook” for Skip
What will truly set the next generation of art directors apart, and what will they need to learn (or unlearn) to lead the next creative wave?
“Definitely experimentation. I’ve been taught to try 100 different ways before settling with one, and that’s helped to really push me creatively. I hope that’s something the next generation takes on, too. It’s easy to get inspiration from so many other creatives nowadays, but playing around and testing things to make it your own would really show. Never be afraid to challenge the first, second, whatever number of thoughts that comes into your mind. Have the openness to try.”
What recent work pushed you creatively, strategically and even emotionally?
“Not specifically one campaign, but generally working on social for IKEA. It’s not all the time I get to work on something so reactive and hands-on with a brand like IKEA. It really has been a team effort, from strategy and accounts to creative and clients, to make some of our projects come to life. What you don’t see is the “What if…” crazy ideas we’ve come up with before landing with the one’s we actually did. Really having fun with the work because of it living more organically on these channels too.”
#2 AD (tie): Maxime Saute, Dentsu
What campaign(s) landed them on the CRC:
“Inflation Cookbook” for Skip || “Following Wildfire” for tentree
What will truly set the next generation of art directors apart, and what will they need to learn (or unlearn) to lead the next creative wave?
“Imagination – because it’s born from your personal experience, curiosity and culture and it needs years to develop itself. It’s not like believing in Santa. If you ask someone unimaginative what the snow becomes when it melts, he will probably say water. For me it’s spring. Visual metaphors have the magic power to spark the imagination. They’re sticky. And we are in the business of sticking in people’s minds.”
What recent work pushed you creatively, strategically and even emotionally?
“‘Following Wildfire’ for Tentree, where we built an innovative technology that detects early signs of wildfire in real-time social media images. It’s a project on which we had a lot of freedom so it allowed us to take more risks. It’s that kind of tech-driven idea that is scary when you need to produce them because it has never been done before. But we had terrific partners on that at Reflektor Digital.”
#2 AD (tie): Nick Noh, Rethink
What campaign(s) landed them on the CRC:
“Coors Light’s Out” for Molson Coors || “Heinz Unfakeable” and “A Littlee Taste of Hell” for Kraft Heinz
What part of the creative process do you secretly love, and what part still tests your patience?
“I secretly love that moment when my partner, Jordan Darnbrough, and I first share an idea with Rethinkers. We’ve already gone through the process of bouncing ideas, pushing, cutting, and only sharing the ones that genuinely excite both of us. If one of us isn’t feeling it, we kill it. So when we do finally put it out there and see that same excitement in someone else – their eyes light up, a smirk, maybe even a laugh, if we’re lucky – it’s the greatest feeling. What still tests my patience? The waiting. The time it takes for an idea to be realized. Because ideas are kind of the opposite of great barbecue. The longer it marinates, the more it loses its lustre. People forget how they felt when they first saw it. But then it enters the world, and all that disappears.”
What recent work pushed you creatively, strategically and even emotionally?
“The speed of ‘Coors Lights Out’ really pushed us last year. We had to move quite fast to make that a reality. We introduced the new can design just 48 hours after Shohei Ohtani initially broke the digital board. The moment happened at Citifield in New York during a road trip for his team. Looking at the team’s schedule, we saw that they would return home days later, so we had the cans and the other campaign pieces ready for his first home game. Somehow, we pulled it all off within a matter of days. And that’s really thanks in large part to our incredible clients at Molson Coors. They moved quickly, right along with us, right from the start. It all kicked off, like many other Rethink ideas, with a simple text message, rather than a formal presentation, and then it took off from there.”
#2 AD (tie): Nathan Styles, Publicis
What campaign(s) landed them on the CRC:
“Inflation Cookbook” for Skip (by Dentsu)
How do you keep your visual instincts sharp, especially when the pace of work keeps accelerating?
“I’ve found timelines have gotten tighter and tighter this year and the amount of AI references and visuals have gone up. AI can be useful, but nothing beats the process of having multiple artboards open with a brain dump of visual directions. I find it super helpful to see where my head has been, so I can see where I might try and go next. Outside of work hours I like to be inspired by watching movies, taking my camera out to explore the city, and listening to new music. There’s so much inspiration out there, and when I take time to pour into my creative side, there are more points of reference to jump off of when the pace gets hectic and I need some quick ideas.”
What recent work pushed you creatively, strategically and even emotionally?
“Our recent campaign for the 4 Nations Face-Off was a perfect answer to a perfect storm. As the sponsor of Team Canada, Rogers wanted to get Canadians excited about the first best-on-best hockey tournament in over a decade and truly own the moment. Political tensions were high heading into the tournament, and we were going head-to-head with Team USA. Canadian Pride was on the line. ‘This is Our Game’ was created and aired ahead of the tournament to become the rallying cry for the nation. Connor McDavid was the face of our campaign and how fitting that the game-winning goal came off his stick. As a follow-up to our spot, we created a ‘Congratulations, Canada’ commercial working hand-in-hand with Sportsnet, so we could air it immediately after they won with the game-winning moment included. By the next morning, we had billboards across the country congratulating the boys too.”
#2 AD (tie): Jason Yurichuck, Freelance
What campaign(s) landed them on the CRC:
“Inflation Cookbook” for Skip (by Dentsu)
What will truly set the next generation of art directors apart, and what will they need to learn (or unlearn) to lead the next creative wave?
“I think the generation of tomorrow’s art directors will set themselves apart [by exploring new] technology. It will always be a present thing that drives the business first – the tech curve is faster than light these days. Always being aware of what’s emerging, especially in your field, will be a tactic to get in the front lines of the industry, or just ahead of the next guy. Being able to utilize your creative skills within new tools and programs is a must.”
What recent work pushed you creatively, strategically and even emotionally?
“An example of a campaign I worked on recently was the BPM Sports Quebec branding. It pushed the team because of the fact that not only did everyone on the account love sports, but for Quebec sports, the project was big deal. There was weeks of back-and-forth over colour combos and logo sha[es whether it was a flag or a banner. It was all chiseled out. I know it wasnt a big big client, pretty sure everyone enjoyed working on it.”
#2 AD (tie): Burak Ozcan, Freelance
What campaign(s) landed them on the CRC:
“Inflation Cookbook” for Skip
What will truly set the next generation of art directors apart, and what will they need to learn (or unlearn) to lead the next creative wave?
“The next generation of art directors will set themselves apart by creating work that is immersive, emotionally resonant, and deeply connected to human experiences. Success won’t come from rigid branding or perfectionism but from adaptability, collaboration, and storytelling that feels alive across different platforms. The best art directors will think beyond aesthetics. The future belongs to those who embrace experimentation, human connection, and purpose-driven creativity.”
What recent work pushed you creatively, strategically and even emotionally?
“Working on Unite 2024 Barcelona for Unity Technologies pushed me in a lot of ways. From crafting an experiential design to shaping content for social media and YouTube, this project pushed me to think beyond traditional storytelling and into the realm of interactive engagement. It was about aligning Unity’s vision with an audience that thrives on innovation. Every detail had to feel dynamic and intentional across multiple touchpoints. It was a high-pressure but rewarding process, juggling expectations and tight timelines while striving to create something truly impactful. Seeing the final result reminded me why I love this work. The best creative projects aren’t just seen; they’re felt.”
