Drugi jezik na kojem je dostupan ovaj članak: Bosnian
By: Ekrem Dupanović
Danilo Trbojević graduated from the Academy of Applied Arts in Belgrade and started his agency career at Luna\TBWA Belgrade as part of their Young Bloods internship program. Very soon he started working within the agency’s design teams, and already in his first year of work Henkel bought one of his designs for the entire territory of Central and Eastern Europe. Thanks to his talent, ideas and dedicated work, Danilo quickly rose to the Art Director position. He has worked on clients such as Nikšićko pivo, Next, Credit Agricole, JTI and many others.
MEDIA MARKETING: When you enrolled in the Academy of Applied Arts, did you know you would be working in advertising?
Danilo Trbojević: No. Back then I didn’t even think I would be working in advertising, but like everyone else I thought I would be a freelancer and would mainly deal with branding (logos, books of standards, packaging), but as the years went by I was more and more attracted to advertising. It’s hard to be a freelancer in our business today, and it’s very difficult to stand out as an individual, so design studios and advertising agencies are the best way for young people to build a good portfolio.
MEDIA MARKETING: What attracted you to start working as a designer in an advertising agency? Research show that young people today avoid working in advertising. They believe it is aggressive and ingenuine.
Danilo Trbojević: As I said in my previous reply, an agency is the best place for young designers to start their career and to give their contribution as a part of a complex team/family.
Young people often don’t accept critique and advice in the right way and don’t like to have oppinions imposed on them. I think if they were persistent and proved themselves, they would realize that in many projects they would have the freedom to create what they want. It is only necessary to have some patience and wait for the right moment / project.
MEDIA MARKETING: Already at the beginning of your career, Henkel bought from the agency one of your works and used it in their campaigns in the entire Central and East Europe territory. How did that influence your further work?
Danilo Trbojević: While I was working on this project, I didn’t even imagine that something like that could happen. Of course, I was glad that this happened, and it convinced me that perseverance and work pay off. It also motivated me in further work and convinced me that designers in advertising have the freedom in their creativity.
MEDIA MARKETING: You rose very quickly to the position of Art Director. Was it good or bad for the development of your career given your age? Where are your ambitions leading you further?
Danilo Trbojević: When I started working, I perceived the position of Art Director as some far future. Since I entered the world of advertising very early through internship at Luna/TBWA, I had the opportunity to learn a lot from my older colleagues, which made it easier for me to rank up to the Art Director position. Now I try to broaden my knowledge every day, and to transfer it to my younger colleagues, so together we are trying to progress and respond to all the challenges ahead.
I think I’m responsible enough, which people have recognized, to be in this position, and I don’t think it’s bad, but can only help me to try even harder and develop further.
I definitely see myself one day at the forefront of a successful design studio.
MEDIA MARKETING: The entire world is in a great crisis today. They say that creative ideas can help solve many problems. What’s your opinion on that?
Danilo Trbojević: Of course, creative ideas are very important to our survival. In advertising, good ideas are needed to bring important messages in the right way to the masses, and to influence changes in their behavior, such as energy saving, protection against violence, culture promotion, poverty reduction, etc.
MEDIA MARKETING: What should young leaders learn from their older colleagues and apply in their work?
Danilo Trbojević: Older colleagues have much more experience and have went through different challenges, meeting many different clients. That’s why we should always listen to what they’re telling us, and to draw from that the most important things that can help us with our problems and hurdles.
MEDIA MARKETING: And what should they definitely discard from that legacy?
Danilo Trbojević: We should perhaps strive towards new trends and new tech. Of course, the old ones should not be forgotten and discarded, but simply recycled in the right way.
MEDIA MARKETING: When we talk about crazy and bold ideas, there’s a general opinion that the communications industry is gripped with fear. Agencies are afraid of losing a client, clients are afraid of losing business. How to overcome this fear, and how much can you, young people, contribute to overcome this situation.
Danilo Trbojević: I believe that fear will always exist. We, the young people, can only give the best we can and with our ideas convince the agency and the client that this is the right idea, and this is the right move to make. I believe good ideas easily find their way to their audience.
MEDIA MARKETING: What advice would you give to your peers? To join you in this industry, or to try and find a better job?
Danilo Trbojević: I believe everyone is an individual, and that everyone will find themselves in what suits them best, but if they love design and constant challenges, I believe they should definitely try this career.
MEDIA MARKETING: How do you envision the future of advertising?
Danilo Trbojević: This is a very difficult question, especially since advertising changes day by day, as well as trends in design. We give our best to be innovative, interesting and creative. Many things already exist, and we have millions of examples of good and bad designs that can serve as a source of new ideas and as an example of what is definitely to be avoided. These solutions are easily accessible today, as we live in the Internet era and since it is developing rapidly. Print has certainly started to be used less, which I’m not happy about, but I do think that advertising will rely solely on digital media in the future, even in looking for new ways to show something different through them.