Tales From The All-Stars

By Brett McKenzie on Aug 29, 2019

Seven global stars speak on the opportunity of a lifetime

 

Earlier this month, 24 incredibly gifted creatives from all over the world came to The One Club for Creativity's New York City gallery to participate in Portfolio Night All-Stars. For five straight days (and one pizza-fueled night) these art directors, copywriters, and designers brought their cultural differences to the table as they took on an amazing creative challenge courtesy of Spotify.

While there was a winning team by the end of the week — a tip of the hat to Austin's Adrianna San Roman; Buenos Aires' Julián Amarillo; Detroit's Montana Flaherty; and Melbourne's Cale Berry (pictured above) — the totally clichéd and totally true thing to say is that everyone is a winner during Portfolio Night All-Stars. Don't believe us? Here's what some of the other All-Stars had to say...

 

 


Ken Kaneko
Art Director, Illustrator
Portfolio Night Singapore

"Coming in on the first day of Portfolio Night All-Stars, I had nothing but anxiety. I was surrounded by some of the best and youngest talents out there in the world and there's me dazed, confused and jet-lagged, flying in all the way from Singapore. But that was soon overcome by the sheer warmth and friendliness I received from everyone. It was such an amazing feeling, to be a part of something bigger than what I saw my creative journey ever being. And the days following were just an explosion of learning, growth, and understanding from all fronts. Being surrounded by all of this energy from all over the globe, in the center of New York, gave me such a creative adrenaline rush. Every conversation, disagreement, and discovery made throughout the creative process is something that I will always treasure moving forward with my career. This event has not only lit a fire under me to pursue nothing but greatness, it's also pushed me to widen my horizon and realize that there's a bigger world out there waiting for me."


Chenwei Xu
Designer
Portfolio Night Shanghai

"Thanks to The One Club for Creativity for this amazing event! I feel so honored to team up with outstanding creatives from all over the world and work on a pitch for Spotify (and that tour of R/GA was also rad!) Portfolio Night All-Stars gave me the opportunity to made friends with the most wonderful group of young creatives in the world — how inspiring is that? Thank you, Portfolio Night!"



Nita Thompson
Designer
Portfolio Night Atlanta

"Overall I had such an amazing experience. Being able to be in New York and meeting all the other All-Stars was incredible. The One Club staff was also so amazing and open as well; they made me feel so much at home that the entire All-Stars week didn’t feel like work to me! Not only was I surrounded by an amazing group of mentors, but I also made friendships from around the world."



Yasmine Radwan​
Copywriter
Portfolio Night Cairo

"From the first minute I arrived at The One Club for Creativity’s New York headquarters, I knew I was in a very welcoming and fun environment that made me feel like home. I had the chance to meet all of the other All-Stars winners, and we all were very friendly and supportive from the very beginning."

"I was so excited to get briefed by Alex and Nathan from Spotify, being tasked to work on an integrated campaign. What made the project easier and less stressful was the supportive, helpful and talented team I was assigned to work with. And on the final morning, all of the teams presented their ideas in front of the Spotify judges, having come up with new, creative and wonderful ideas. I think every one of us proved that we deserved to be Portfolio Night All-Stars."

"I couldn't be more thankful for The One Club for Creativity for this lifetime opportunity! I created memories with 24 new friends that will always last forever."


Florencia Luna
Art Director
Portfolio Night Lima

"The All-Stars Week in New York City was definitely a memorable experience that opened our minds and let us connect with a global view of the creative industry. Despite our different cultures and various accents, we managed to understand each other as we focused on making a great campaign. It was wonderful to hear the unique perspectives that everyone had, especially when your teammates were from different creative fields than you. That diversity made this experience really unique, and I'm glad that I had the chance to learn more about what my fellow All-Stars had to share."

"I'm forever grateful to The One Club for Creativity for putting this together, and I can't wait to see where my fellow All-Stars are off to next!"


Chiara Martini
Art Director
Portfolio Night San Francisco

"No matter how much research I had done about previous Portfolio Night All-Stars, when I first landed in New York, I was extremely nervous, excited, scared and amazed by everything that was going to happen. It didn't feel real! I knew that I would meet people from all over the world, but I never would have imagined how attached to everyone I would get in just a week.!"

"From the very first day, it didn't like a competition. Even when we were split into teams, there was such a great harmony between everybody that when it was all over, I wished we could receive another brief in order to stay one more week together!" 

"I'm so grateful to have met so many talented, extraordinary and amazing humans from all over the world. I was aware of how much creativity unites people, but I never imagined it at this level. I learned so much from everyone in just a few days, and I feel so lucky that wherever I decide to travel in this world, I now have a number to call!"


Violet Tong
Art Director/UX Designer
Portfolio Night Beijing

"This was my first time getting the chance to create an advertising campaign with so many talented creatives from all over the world! I'm actually very surprised that we all did such an amazing job in such a short period of time. Everyone provided incredibly interesting ideas from their fields of expertise, and the whole experience was so much fun. I'm currently working as a UX designer, and I don't have many opportunities to be 100% creative, to soak in a campaign idea, to polish it and enjoy the vibe. Portfolio Night All-Stars gave me the chance to experience that. Thank you!"


As you can see, Portfolio Night All-Stars is an incredible experience, one that shapes careers and broadens horizons. But you can't make it to All-Stars unless you attend Portfolio Night, and you can't attend Portfolio Night unless you're in a Portfolio Night city! We're already laying the groundwork for Portfolio Night 2020, which will take place on Wednesday, May 20. Want to get your city involved? Drop us a line!

 


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