#BehindtheSelfie with... Auryn Hiscock
1. Where do you live, work and play?
I live in Johannesburg, work wherever work takes me, and play in-between. Sometimes during.
2. What’s your claim to fame?
I wrote an article for Bizcommunity once.
I also have screenwriting creds, and the IMDb page to prove it.
3. Describe your career so far.
Self-actualising. I started out at a Seta but naturally gravitated towards the world of advertising, from working at South Africa’s best (and snarkiest) daily deals site to finding myself at Fort, who live and breathe storytelling.
4. Tell us a few of your favourite things.
Sunny weather, South African women, tattoos, festival bangers, an after-work drink I’ve earned, or haven’t.
5. What do you love about your industry?
How the industry can make you feel on top of the world, and simultaneously humble you as a creative.
6. Describe your average workday, if such a thing exists.
It doesn’t. On any given day, I could find myself on-set, in studio, or hacking away at briefs. It’s brilliant.
7. What are the tools of your trade?
A Mac, a notebook, a dictionary, an internet connection, and a point to prove.
8. Who is getting it right in your industry?
Anyone committing themselves to doing meaningful work, not necessarily filling up an awards cabinet.
9. List a few pain points the industry can improve on.
Elitism, shovelling work abroad and hopping on trends.
Case in point: That well-meaning, but still a little derivative Gillette ad.
10. What are you working on right now?
A few sci-fi inspired campaigns for an innovative web browser, so check back for that.
11. Tell us some of the buzzwords floating around in your industry at the moment, and some of the catchphrases you utter yourself.
@Adweak sums it up pretty nicely…
BREAKING: Agencies Desperately Searching Internet For Something, Anything That Ranks Their Super Bowl Spot In The Top Ten
— ADWEAK (@adweak) February 4, 2019
BREAKING: Adweak Stock Price Soars With Launch Of New Coffee Mug: https://t.co/d8rF5pvgp7 pic.twitter.com/hS3ZgRs4w4
— ADWEAK (@adweak) January 17, 2019
12. Where and when do you have your best ideas?
In the most unusual places, usually when I’m not looking for them.
I once woke up with a fleshed out concept on my Notes app, with no idea of how it got there. True story.13. What’s your secret talent/party trick?
Also, rotate social circles because it doesn’t take long for them to catch on.
14. Are you a technophobe or a technophile?
Technophile.
15. What would we find if we scrolled through your phone?
Pinterest boards, notes on new ideas, idioms and expressions I find interesting, dozens of apps I never use, and whatever filth filters through from my WhatsApp groups.
16. What advice would you give to newbies hoping to crack into the industry?
To make great advertising, you have to be a fan of it first. Also: See my answer to number 4. The takeaway: Trust the process.
*Interviewed by Leigh Andrews.
About Leigh Andrews
Leigh Andrews AKA the #MilkshakeQueen, is former Editor-in-Chief: Marketing & Media at Bizcommunity.com, with a passion for issues of diversity, inclusion and equality, and of course, gourmet food and drinks! She can be reached on Twitter at @Leigh_Andrews.
