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Creative Leadership

Creative Leaders on Failure: Somesuch’s Sally Campbell

We’ve talked to five of CR’s Creative Leaders 50 about how they have handled failure in their own career, and how they advise others to cope when things don’t go according to plan. First up is production company Somesuch co-founder, Sally Campbell

By Eliza Williams 24/09/2018 2:23 pm

Sally Campbell founded the production company Somesuch in 2010 alongside Tim Nash and Nick Gordon, and the company now boasts some of the most significant directing talent working in ads and music videos today, including Daniel Wolfe, Kim Gehrig and Aoife McArdle.

Campbell started her career in advertising, working at WCRS and BBH, before moving to production, spending ten years at Academy Films, first as a producer then as joint MD. Since co-founding Somesuch, she has championed female talent at the company, across both its roster and its management team.

Below we talk to Campbell about the difficult subject of failure: of how it has impacted her career, and how she encourages her colleagues and the directors she works with to deal with it.

Creative Insight

New type trends to look out for in 2022

How does the environment relate to Art Nouveau typography, and is it going anywhere? And will variable fonts finally come into their own? Monotype weighs in on the trends du jour

Creative Inspiration

New Balance rethinks what it means to be a runner in new campaign

Launched with fitness app Strava, the campaign champions less conventional forms of exercise – from chasing after your dog to running for the bus

Creative Insight

What advertising is still getting wrong about casting

We speak to Mother ad agency and Road Casting about the dos and don’ts of casting ads – from opening up the process to more diverse talent to recognising the need for nuanced storytelling

Creative Insight

My Breakthrough Moment: Dean Chalkley

“Photography can be a thing unto itself. It’s more than documentation.” Dean Chalkley discusses how his 2005 portrait of Noel Gallagher marked a personal turning point in terms of culture and photography

Creative Process

Inside The Matrix Resurrections

As the mind-bending world of the Matrix returns to the big screen, we speak to the team behind the latest film’s screen-based graphics about helping reboot the cult classic for a new era

Creative Inspiration

Don’t be like Emily in Paris, says Duolingo campaign

To mark season two of the Netflix hit, the language-learning app invites Emilys everywhere to improve their French

Creative Insight

How to create a logo that lasts

Logos today need to successfully work in more places than ever before, and in a multitude of formats and sizes. Here, Sagi Haviv, partner and designer at Chermayeff & Geismar & Haviv in New York, breaks down how to make a mark that endures

Creative Process

What the Beatles can teach us about creative process

The epic Disney+ series The Beatles: Get Back shows the sprawling, messy process of creativity. Here Bas Korsten and Daniel Bonner, Global CCOs at Wunderman Thompson, draw out six insights from it for creative teams to learn from

Trends of the Year 2021

The second year of the pandemic brought about yet more uncertainty, but there was also plenty of innovation, humour and hope. Here we look back at the creative trends over the past 12 months

The Photography Annual 2021 Winners

Welcome to the winners showcase for this year’s Creative Review Photography Annual, where we celebrate the world of photography in all its forms – personal work, advertising, editorial, student/grad work and more. Shown here are our winners and honourable mentions for this year, selected by an expert panel of judges

Creative Process

Building the visual world of Adele

Following the release of Adele’s latest album, creative director and long-time collaborator Phil Lee discusses what it’s like to help create a brand for one of the world’s biggest artists

Creative Inspiration

Yeye Weller’s new prints implore us to keep smiling

Print shop They Made This enlisted the German artist to bring some cheer to London with a new set of uplifting illustrations

Creative Insight

How the Apple iPod influenced sonic branding

As the iPod turns 20, Joe Belliotti, CEO at MassiveMusic North America, reflects on how Apple used sonic branding to help us get used to a revolutionary new product, and to stand out

Creative Insight

How McSweeney’s zags where other publishers zig

The American publisher has spent the last 23 years defiantly doing the opposite of everyone else in the book and magazine world. Here’s how McSweeney’s creates its distinctive and often daring tone of voice

Creative Process

An Oral History of John Lewis’ The Long Wait

It was the Christmas ad that launched a thousand Christmas ads, and established John Lewis’s festive branding tropes for a decade to come. Director Dougal Wilson and adam&eveDDB co-founder Ben Priest remember how The Long Wait was made

Creative Insight

Ask Anna: Will going on parental leave affect my creative career?

Our agony aunt Anna Higgs addresses a reader’s questions about life as a parent in the creative industry. We hear about the advantages parenthood can bring to the workplace, but also of the inequalities that remain across some of the industry

Creative Inspiration

Pantone’s 2022 Colour of the Year is periwinkle

For the first time, the colour experts have created a brand new hue for the annual announcement – and it’s a lilacy blue that speaks to the future of fashion as well as the metaverse

Creative Inspiration

A new campaign uses travel posters to tackle anti-Asian hate crime

Created by Droga5 for the Asian American Federation, the vintage-inspired posters provide a clever take on a loaded question: where are you really from?

Creative Process

How I Work: Gabriella Marcella, founder of Risotto Studio

The founder of Risotto Studio, the Glasgow print shop devoted to the glories of printing and paper, talks about the bustling art scene in the city, the beauty of keeping things small, and her house style

Creative Insight

The CDP guide to making great ads

Peter Levelle, director and former head of TV production at the storied Collett Dickenson Pearce, shares the ad agency’s gospel – including handling difficult clients, keeping creatives happy, and adopting a punishingly scrupulous approach to ideas

Creative Process

Digital artist Claudia Rafael on painting with code

The Berlin-based digital artist works with AI and AR to create surreal portraits and filters. She talks to us about ethics, beauty, and the exchange between analogue and digital

Seven ages of a creative

We talk to creatives aged 19 to 87 about their experiences in the creative industry, their hopes and dreams, the changes they have witnessed, and what developments they hope may come in the future

Creative Insight

The cultural influence of Spike Lee

The acclaimed filmmaker has dipped his toe into advertising, teaching and even brand-building during his four-decade career. As he releases his first monograph, we look at how he became a pop culture icon

Creative Insight

The love-hate world of perfume ads

As the festive season wafts in, on a cloud of scent, we find out what makes fragrance ads so compelling – with help from spoof Twitter sensation @perfumeads

Creative Inspiration

Photography project Eye Mama captures motherhood during the pandemic

The submissions-based project is curated by Karni Arieli. Here she talks about the inspiration for the series, the themes explored and how it helped her connect with her own practice

Creative Insight

Multidisciplinary designer Sablā Stays on embracing change

We speak to the New York native about meandering between the paths of fashion, graphics and art direction, plus her ever-evolving collaboration with Solange at creative agency Saint Heron

Creative Insight

Shantell Martin on the rocky road to becoming an artist

From Thamesmead to Tokyo and New York, Shantell Martin has taken her line-drawn style around the world – but it’s been a bumpy journey. As she sets her sights back on the UK she chats with CR about how art became a tool to “express, extract and deal”

Creative Process

Can Inque reinvent the magazine?

Designer Matt Willey and editor Dan Crowe have reunited on Inque, a decade-long collaboration born out of what they love (and hate) about the world of magazines. We speak to the duo about bringing the first issue to life

Creative Inspiration

Giorgia Lupi tells her life story using hand-stitched data

The information designer and Pentagram partner has filled a Moleskine notebook with “a visual archive” of her memories, sewing over 14,000 stitches to represent each day of her life so far

Creative Insight

Seven ages of a creative: Andrew Thomas Huang

Filmmaker Andrew Thomas Huang is known for his otherworldly visions, earning him high-profile collaborations with Björk and FKA twigs. He talks to us about the need to allow creatives to grow as their careers develop

Creative Insight

The Modernist on a decade of making a magazine

As the Modernist celebrates its 10th anniversary, the team behind the publication discuss the trials and tribulations of running an indie mag and how it has stood the test of time

Creative Insight

Is advertising finally addressing its age problem?

Advertising has long been obsessed with youth. But is the industry finally waking up to the opportunities that older generations present, both in campaigns and behind the scenes?

Creative Inspiration

Olivia Harris’ photo book reflects on life during the first lockdown

The photographer has published a book of images she created during the UK’s first lockdown when people adjusted to new ways of living and connecting with each other

Creative Insight

How cultural institutions can tackle sustainability

Is there a responsibility for cultural institutions to not just reflect the past, but contemplate the future as well? National Gallery Victoria curator Ewan McEoin talks to CR about the museum’s latest show on sustainability and why they want to invest in designers

Creative Insight

Is AI killing creativity in film? Or fuelling it?

AI is often viewed as the death of creativity. Yet, as Maximilian Niemann, a director at Unit9 production company, points out, when machines are used in collaboration with humans, it may actually make for better work

Creative Inspiration

John Lewis’ festive ad tells the story of a space traveller’s first Christmas

Focusing on an unlikely friendship that forms between a young boy and his new intergalactic companion, the spot is all about the little things that matter during the festive season

Creative Process

Director Gus Van Sant on finding stories in unexpected places

Since the 1980s, the filmmaker and artist has turned his lens towards the fringes. He talks to us about relinquishing control, Hollywood reboot culture, and how a Gucci mini-series captured the spirit of his early works

Creative Insight

Celebrating Marvel’s graphic design superpowers

For decades, comic books have showcased vibrant graphic design that is a pivotal part of the superhero world. Liz Stinson, editor of a new book celebrating Marvel, discusses the publisher’s lasting contribution to visual culture

Creative Insight

Why fashion is embracing gaming

As brands cotton on to the potential of gaming, CR explores why it’s a good fit for fashion labels, and what the future could hold for digital clothes, esports sponsorships and in-game narratives

Creative Insight

Ikea and Mother on the agency-client relationship

At this year’s Festival of Marketing: The Year Ahead, Kemi Anthony, marketing communications manager at Ikea, and Katie Mackay-Sinclair, partner at Mother, discussed how nurturing a decade-long relationship has led to an array of successful campaigns

Creative Inspiration

Sianeh Kpukuyou on why she celebrates dark-skinned women in her images

The Ghana-based photographer discusses the challenges of being a female photographer in Africa and why she hopes her images inspire others to see the value in creative jobs

Creative Process

Inside the epic world of Dune

Denis Villeneuve’s adaption of cult sci-fi novel Dune is a masterclass in world-building. We speak to the film’s production designer Patrice Vermette about helping the director bring his intergalactic vision to life

Creative Process

Inside the French Dispatch

Wes Anderson’s star-studded film follows the dramas that unravel in a fictional French city, told from the perspective of expat journalists. We look at how graphic design and illustration brought the movie to life

Creative Insight

Lazy Oaf at 20: Lessons on running a fashion brand

We speak to Lazy Oaf founder Gemma Shiel about her journey from printing T-shirts in her dad’s garage to spending the last two decades at the helm of one of the most creative fashion brands going

Creative Inspiration

Sid Lee says ‘Bonjour’ to Paris’s public transport app

An illustration-heavy visual identity introduces the city’s new Bonjour RATP app, which lets Parisians navigate the Metro, reserve bikes and hail a cab

Creative Insight

Beano: 80 years of rebel creativity

Somerset House’s new exhibition explores the comic’s lasting, subversive influence, finding links between its gleeful rule-breaking and the work of contemporary artists and creatives

Creative Process

The art of creating a James Bond title sequence

Daniel Kleinman has been the creative mind behind almost every 007 title sequence since the 90s. He discusses his work on Daniel Craig’s final foray in No Time to Die and how he finds the delicate balance between reinvention and homage

Creative Inspiration

Mel D Cole’s powerful photos of American protest

The photographer switched his focus from the hip-hop scene to the Black Lives Matter movement last year in the wake of the murder of George Floyd. Now, he’s turned his series into a book

Creative Insight

The brands giving the DIY sector a makeover

Interest in home improvement exploded in the wake of the pandemic. We speak to DIY veteran B&Q and D2C startup Lick about how they’re communicating with consumers and whether the sector can sustain its lockdown success

Creative Insight

How a signature motif can make your work stand out

In the competitive world of illustration, adopting a signature motif or icon in your work can help you grow your brand and your career. Here, CR speaks to three illustrators about the benefits and challenges of making one element your trademark

Creative Insight

Scott Dungate on what it means to be a global creative

Wieden + Kennedy Tokyo’s ECD discusses his experiences working everywhere from Shanghai to London, and explains what it takes to be successful as a globetrotting ad creative

Creative Insight

How Duolingo keeps learning fun

Duolingo’s creative director James Kuczynski speaks to CR about how the app keeps users engaged, but also how it translates a sense of fun into its communications

Creative Inspiration

Striking poster campaign introduces Coca-Cola Real Magic tagline

The posters feature bold illustrations and photography and also reveal a refreshed design identity for the trademark Coke logo

Creative Insight

How I Got Here: Daniel Liévano

The artist and author delves into his philosophically minded approach to creativity, including the importance of solitude and his attempt to translate the metaphorical “magic” of Haruki Murakami

Creative Inspiration

Geltor’s identity by &Walsh emphasises the wild beauty of nature

‘Earth-conscious’ biodesign company Geltor has a new look by &Walsh that draws on cells and natural ingredients, brought to life with the help of striking art direction

Creative Insight

How Papier redefined the stationery sector

As the business unveils a major rebrand, founder Taymoor Atighetchi shares how he’s spent the last six years building a category-defining stationery brand

Creative Insight

Studio Blackburn on its We Mean Green campaign

Last week a revamp, albeit a temporary one, of the British Rail double arrow logo caused a stir in the design press and on social media. CR speaks to Studio Blackburn, the team behind the update, to get an insight into the project and how they felt about the reaction

Creative Process

Lifting the lid on Pringles’ new rebrand

Snack brand Pringles has revealed the first update to its mascot in 20 years. JKR creative director Della Lawrence takes us through the new branding, including Mr P’s widely discussed haircut

Creative Insight

Redressing the UK’s creative industries’ London-centricity

Creativity is thriving across the UK – not just in London. So why aren’t design students hearing about it?