A Night with Six of Miami’s Greatest of All Time Creatives

Being a creative professional in Miami is a challenge that only the bravest dare to take on. I still remember when I first stepped into this city almost nine years ago, I quickly discovered the five most essential things about the culture here:

1. Basketball is the most influential sport, and they use the word “GOAT” to define someone as the” greatest of all time.”
2. Cortadito coffee is a gift from the gods that helps us start activities with energy.
3. The beaches, discos, and shopping centers are the primary sources of attraction for tourists.
4. Miami is a critical bridge between the American advertising and artistic world as well as the rest of the world.
5. If you want to succeed, you should always do your job as if it’s the greatest of all time.

That's why we decided to promote this event using the hashtag #AlwaysFollowTheGOAT. In essence, we conducted a tireless search and managed to gather six acclaimed panelists (six GOATs as they were called). They represented some of the most renowned agencies in our community. They provided a very diverse perspective since we had panelists from small to large agencies, and they turned out to be (without planning) all Hispanics. The stars of the night were Iván Calle from Zubi, Ricky Vior from The Community, Paul Ramírez from TEAM Enterprises, Félix Castro from WOW MKTG, Angel Van Der Biest from Nobox, and Jaume Rodríguez from Alma.

In addition to risking putting a DJ with his ’73 Volkswagen bus in the auditorium of Miami Ad School Wynwood, we also gave away a lot of alcohol and food so we could keep our party Miami style. Because we cannot have a successful networking event here in Miami without these ingredients, right? Then, we were able to pick the brains of these self-proclaimed "rare by nature" panelists. Among the things we learned, the tidbits that generated most feedback were their confessions about their honesty on social networks; their opinions about a creative being a "jack of all trades" versus being a specialist; their internship programs at their respective agencies; and finally, their expectations when they hire a candidate. Our master of ceremonies, Grizelle De Los Reyes, FIU Graduate Director of Global Strategic Communications – Creative Track in Partnership with Miami Ad School, did an amazing job in guiding the conversation from beginning to end.

In this second event of the Miami chapter of The One Club For Creativity, we managed to gather more than seventy "Interns & Creatives." Yes, I know it is not the same, but if you want to see the full video of the panel discussion (big thanks to David Morris from TEAM Enterprises for recording it), please click here. To see photos taken at the event, please click here.

However, despite the success of this gathering, we had complaints due to there being no women in the panel. But believe me, we invited them. Unfortunately, they could not attend this time due to prior commitments. So, with this in mind, we decided to host an event where women could network with other women in leadership positions and learn their challenges, their perspectives, and their vision for the future of the creative world. To reserve seats for this event, please click here.

Written by Marco Caridad, Senior Graphic Designer at Redline Media Group & Visual Artist

Video: Team Enterprises | Photography: Henry Chinea