I chat to Xolisa Dyeshana, chief creative officer, Joe Public United, Johannesburg, ahead of the panel discussion, which takes place online on Thursday, 10 June 2021 from 5pm to 6pm SAST, and will also include South Africans Camilla Clerke, ECD at Ogilvy Cape Town and Neo Mashigo, CCO at M&C Saatchi Abel, Johannesburg.

Congrats on being selected to take part in the SA edition of The One Club’s Global Media Talks series of panel discussions! What does this opportunity mean to you?

This is a really huge honour because the One Club is a leading organisation for creativity in South Africa and around the world. I think the people who form part of these initiatives represent excellence across multiple global markets and across various areas of our industry.

So to be included in unpacking and discussing some of the current opportunities and challenges we have is a great honour.

Bizcommunity and The Creative Circle partner with The One Club to host "Global Media Talks: South Africa" at Creative Week 2021

Bizcommunity.com  5 May 2021

The session will be a lively discussion of current creative trends in South Africa, the country’s best work of the past year and other topics of interest to the agency and creative world. What are some key points you’re thinking of talking to and why?

I'll be talking about where we find ourselves in the context of the current challenges. I think Covid has been life defining for our industry and there's life before and after Covid and for me its about looking at some of those things that we had to adapt to move forward in this new world.

This will surely help give South Africa’s creative excellence a spotlight on the global stage. Where do you think SA is at creatively speaking in relation to its global counterparts?

In relation to our global counterparts we are very much en par with some of the leading nations, but it's in specific pockets. I think there are some areas of development that we need to focus on. There are parts of the world that are ahead of us, particularly in digital, but it's nothing that is insurmountable. South Africans have shown that we are certainly not a Third World country when it comes to creative thinking.

This year’s Creative Week theme is ‘connect. provoke. inspire’. What does this elicit in your mind?

It elicits thought and feelings of engaging communication. In order to connect, provoke and inspire, your communications must be engaging. Never has this been more important than now because people have so many options around what they consume and how they consume it.

So in order for us and brands to connect we need to cut through the latest Netflix specials, or the funniest TikTok videos to grab the attention of consumers and make them want to engage.