„We are programmed to progress.“

Caitlin, which idea can, in fact, nail jelly on a wall and make the formerly impossible possible?

The obvious answer I guess is technology. VR, for example, can make the impossible possible – I have just finished doing a tour of an ancient tomb and never moved from my living room.  But I guess what sits behind technology is the idea of progress being not only possible but necessary. As humans, we don’t choose to move forward, we just do it. We are programmed to progress – and that is what makes the impossible, possible.

You have been a speaker and a jury member/chairwoman at many prestigious awards like the AD&D and Cannes Lions. How can creative awards change advertisement to the better?

I think anything that provides a benchmark stimulates competition. And competition breeds hunger. And hunger results in finding new solutions. Advertising gets better when we move forward in the way we think about connecting businesses and brands to people.

At the end of the day, every human in every culture wants to create connection.

You have insights into different cultures of creative communication. Can you tell us one common denominator?

I think the desire to create connection. That connection might be through humour, visual beauty, clever play on words, telling stories – but at the end of the day, every human in every culture wants to create connection.

Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp have a great impact on human interaction and every major update has the power to change the daily business of marketeers worldwide. Is that a burden or a motivation?

It is very motivating for me to always work with change. I love the constant ‘update’ world of  tech. We are now all used to our apps and platforms being constant iterations of what went before. We are evolutionists, not creationists. The idea that the perfectly formed ‘world’ is created and never needs improvement or adjustments is dull to me.

Caitlin Ryan wird am Donnerstag, den 6. Mai auf dem ADC Festival Kongress sprechen. Der Kongress wird live und kostenfrei auf YouTube gezeigt.