Carlos Andres Rodriguez of MullenLowe Vividly Recalls the Day He Fell in Love With Creativity

'My gut said: This is it. I'm lost now'

Carlos is executive creative director of MullenLowe UK.

We spent two minutes with Carlos to learn more about his background, his creative inspirations and recent work he’s admired. 

Carlos, tell us …

Where you grew up, and where you live now?

I was born and grew up in Bogota—Colombia’s capital city. I’ve been living in London for about two years.

How you first realized you were creative.

When I was 6 years old, I was buying school supplies with my parents and randomly found myself in front of a wooden box with three rainbows comprised of colored pencils, markers and modeling clay. My gut said: THIS IS IT. I’M LOST NOW. And I never went back.

A person you idolized creatively early on.

When I was a teenager, I played in a punk pop band with my brothers and some friends. I always dreamed of playing, composing and performing like Blink 182. That didn’t go very far. In advertising the ones that have inspired me the most are David Droga, Juan Cabral, Jessica Apellaniz and Rob Reilly.

A moment from high school or college that changed your life.

I was studying communications, and since the field is so open, I wasn’t clear on what I was going to do with my life when I graduated. I liked cinema, graphic design, photography and art. One day at the end of the semester, my professor said that he wasn’t going to teach class. Instead, he shared the Film Cannes Lions winners. I had no idea what he was talking about. I was mesmerized watching all the ads on the classroom’s big screen. And then the Sony Bravia “Balls” commercial started rolling. I was just blown-away. I told myself: F**k! I’m in! 

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A book, movie, TV show or podcast you recently found inspiring.

Movie: IF (written and directed by John Krasinski. I didn’t expect to cry at the end of the film. Spoiler alert: It’s a movie about adults who still have a child in them (pretty much like ad creatives), but lost their way when they grew up. Lots of Easter eggs (even in the final credits), great casting, dialogue, script, characters,  execution. It instantly became one of my favorites.

One of your favorite creative projects you’ve ever worked on. 

In 2018, when I was CCO at MullenLowe SSP3, a client dropped us one of the most difficult yet exciting briefs: Budweiser was going to sponsor the Premier League and La Liga. Since they had no credentials in soccer at all, we needed to find a way to communicate this partnership in a world dominated by European beers (Carlsberg, Estrella, Guinness, etc). The team found a beautiful way in, by highlighting the iconic Bud logo in the most famous historic plays in both Leagues. 

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“Rebrand the Game” had almost half of my creative department involved. We spent nine months working with several art directors and copywriters, each of whom were trying to crack each goal with a different technique. And then we had to get them approved by both leagues. We judged the work together, we killed the work together and we improved the work together with client and league participation. It was the ultimate form of teamwork.

A recent project you’re proud of.

A year-and-a-half ago, I was called back by MullenLowe to be the creative lead on Knorr, Unilever’s second-largest brand. My arrival coincided with the new strategy “Make Good Food Irresistible,” which among other things, seks to bring the brand into pop culture. “Mod the Vegis” is one of the campaigns we did this year. Vegetables get a bad rap IRL. We found that this bias is also present in video games, where vegetables get you less rewards than other kinds of food (i.e. steak). Since Knorr levels up vegetables in the real world, we thought we should do so in the virtual world, too. We partnered with gamers and developers and created different modifications in some of the top gaming titles. The mods turned veggies into skins, weapons, armor, vehicles, characters and all kinds of different items and rewards that gave players advantages. The movement was kickstarted by Twitch streamer Ninja, and promoted by streamers in 10 countries.

Someone else’s work that inspired you years ago. 

In 2016 I was named ECD at MullenLowe SSP3 in Bogota. It was the day after the Super Bowl and as always, everything was about the ads. One caught my attention and is still in my top 5: Volkswagen’s “The Force” by Deutsch LA. Every time I see it brings a smile to my face. It gives me SO much envy (good envy).

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Someone else’s work you admired lately. 

“Thanks for Coke-Creating” by VML. A brand of that caliber embracing people messing with their own “sacred” assets is the ultimate proof of brand superiority. If any advertiser in the world could do this, it’s Coca-Cola. And they did it—and did it big.

Your main strength as a creative person.

Energy. I give 100 percent every single day no matter the outcome. Seeing the bright side in everything is what fuels me.

Your biggest weakness.

I’m very naive. I trust people, and say and do things that I shouldn’t.

A mentor who helped you navigate the industry.

Jose Miguel Sokoloff, my current boss. He has generously given me the opportunity to fail over and over again. He has also helped me navigate my mistakes by sharing his knowledge.

How you’re paying it forward with the next generation of creatives.

I’m very generous with my knowledge and experience. I try to help every junior team that approaches me for anything: a video case, cracking an idea, sharing a portfolio, or just a quick chat on any topic. I LOVE to be surrounded by younger creatives. That’s what keeps me alive in the business. My two right hands are 10 years younger than me. And the next one coming up is almost 17 years younger.

What you’d be doing if you weren’t in advertising.

Making hip-hop, painting, or directing action movies. I’d be broke though.