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5 minutes with... in association withAdobe Firefly
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5 Minutes with… Toby Past

15/03/2023
Advertiser/Brand
San Jose, United States
361
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SVP, executive creative director at Razorfish speaks to LBB’s Addison Capper, in association with Adobe, about how the agency is "learning, pushing, and stretching new technologies” to further creative output

Adobe XD is a proud supporter of LBB. As part of the sponsorship of the ‘5 Minutes with…’ channel, we spend time with some of the most innovative and creative minds in the industry.

In the hot seat today is Toby Past, SVP, executive creative director at Razorfish’s Los Angeles outpost, which he opened in 2014 and has built from the ground up since. Toby’s career began in motion graphics and interactive design before he wound up at an ad agency with a focus on digital creativity. At Razorfish, he employs all of this thinking to operate Razorfish as a “marketing transformation agency”, one that’s at the forefront of new technology and innovation.

He spoke with LBB’s Addison Capper. 

 

LBB> Razorfish dubs itself an "interactive agency" - given the interactive nature of much of the advertising and general planet of 2023, how do you define the agency and the type of work it does?

 
Toby> I think of Razorfish not just as an interactive agency, but a marketing transformation agency. What's that you ask?! We help our clients transform their approach to marketing and advertising through our ‘purpose to performance’ framework with their customers at the heart of everything we do. This may sound lofty and abstract, but it’s quite structured and strategic and applies across the many disciplines we have at Razorfish. Marketing transformation also means we’re deeply committed to being at the forefront of emerging technology and innovation and advising our clients on how to navigate these spaces. In the end, we’re able to help them reimagine what it means to reach their customers in newer, smarter, better ways that deliver on their purpose as a company as well as the needs of their customers.
 
 

LBB> With that in mind, what are your thoughts on the debate around specialists versus generalists when it comes to agencies?

 
Toby> I’m a strong believer in T-shaped talent in the agency world – a wide-ranging knowledge set accompanied by a deep skill set in a particular craft or discipline. I think that allows us to build nimbler teams to take on complex campaigns or experiences with novel creative solutions. In my experience, some of the best copywriters have been art directors and some copywriters have had excellent visual instincts as well, not to mention knowledge of technological possibilities across creatives to inspire even better ideas for experiences. But the most crucial skill for any team member is more of a mindset than a hard skill – endless, insatiable curiosity that drives them to constantly seek out the new, the innovative, and the craziest solution possible.
 
 

LBB> You worked in motion graphics before you wound up in advertising. What spurred the career switch, and how does that experience aid you in your role today, if at all?

 
Toby> Well, I was always drawn to visual storytelling and film, so when I was doing motion graphics work, I tended to express very heady, conceptual ideas through that work. I was fortunate to have my work noticed when I was making award-winning digital work with my boutique agency, UndoCorp. One thing led to another and I went agency-side to help build out digitally driven creative. I feel my experience in motion graphics still comes into play when guiding creative teams in story creation, narrative flourish for ideas, as well as motion design for many of our clients in social. It’s just how my mind seems to work, really, so I try to use it to my teams’ benefit.
 

 

LBB> You also worked in interactive design, which seems like it crosses over somewhat with what you do at Razorfish. How has that field and speciality evolved since you started out?

 
Toby> It’s been more revolutionary than evolutionary since I started, I think. I came up creating in HTML, Javascript, Flash, and Director, designing in Freehand and writing Actionscript while learning from the early pioneers in the space like the OG Razorfish, Hillman Curtis, Josh Davis, Gmunk, and Hi-ReS! Those days really were the wild west on the internet, creatively speaking. It was a beautiful time! Then web2 came along, and everything became more standardised, syndicated, and creatively a bit more regular and boring. But the challenge for me then became doing creative experience design at scale for large companies who were looking to change the way they did things to a digital-first, customer-first mindset, which went hand in hand with the marketing transformation approach that has now become the standard for us here at Razorfish. Working with a host of clients to transform their marketing into customer-centred, digital-first approaches has become the mission and driving ambition for my career.
 


LBB> You founded Razorfish LA from the ground up. With that in mind, how do you think about your role as a creative leader? How have you shaped a culture and environment in which creativity can flourish?

 
Toby> Well, my view of that role has shifted over the years as I’ve moved from being a very hands-on creative to a more strategic creative leader whose goal is to empower and inspire my teams to do their best work. Being in LA itself is a huge creative inspiration for my teams, as there’s always so much going on here both in and out of the industry, but my goal has always been to give them everything they need to be able to do their best work – from support, freedom, inspiration, tools, fighting the things I don’t want them to worry about, etc. I also make myself available at any time to talk with them, as I believe in bringing your whole person to work as the best creative comes from being able to authentically be yourself in what you do, and that takes collective trust.
 


LBB> What are you most proud of recently and why?

 
Toby> We’ve been leaning into web3 and AI and discovering lots of great new creative applications for both. This is a big part of our DNA at Razorfish - learning, pushing, and stretching new technologies creatively into places and spaces and using that to benefit our clients in unforeseen ways. It keeps things fresh, exciting, and fun in our creative group here.
 
 
 

LBB> What is an interesting digital tool that you can't live without at work? And why?

 
Toby> My smartphone because it basically has everything on it I need in our digitally connected world today. From email and Teams to social media and creative tools, including AI, I can literally make everything I need on my phone - though it requires lots of zooming to get into any detailed work.
 


LBB> What sorts of experiences have impacted how you approach your professional role recently? Has anything changed your perspective massively?

 
Toby> The pandemic changed everything including my approach to work and put everything in life under a microscope, alongside the tumultuous social events happening during that time. It made me more focused on providing a well-rounded work experience for my teams that consider things outside of work much differently. This has been driven in Razorfish from the highest levels as well, and I truly appreciate that more than I can say – the very human way in which we’ve decided to approach handling difficult topics at work with transparency, forthrightness, and humility. It makes a huge difference to really like the people you work with day to day, and I think we have that at Razorfish in a way most agencies don’t.
 
 

LBB> Outside of work, what do you like to get up to?

 
Toby> I’m an avid outdoorsman, so living in California is like heaven to me and my family. We live in Venice Beach so tons of water activities, though I’m not as great of a surfer as I’d like to be. We go camping and overlanding every chance we get – to the Mojave, the Sierras, the Central coast, Utah, Arizona… everywhere we can. I’ve also recently gotten into running ultra trail races in the local mountains, having just finished my first 30k in Malibu and looking into a 50k race later this year. For me, it’s a great way to destress, meditate, and get into something completely different than being on a computer all day! My wife is also an artist and curator, so we go to tons of great art events around LA with friends and love discovering new inspirations. We just ran into Larry David at the LA Frieze Art show and that was pretty, pretty, pretty good.

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