Matt Cooper - The ‘Little Black Book’ for the production industry

06/07/23 • 22 min

This week on The MCA Prodcast Pat Murphy talks to Matt Cooper, Founder and CEO of Little Black Book which has grown from a humble guide about worldwide advertising hubs, to an editorially-led global news platform and creative industry fame factory. Hailed ‘THE communications business for the communications world’, LBB aims to celebrate creativity and grow fame for its members through bespoke tools and offerings. Now backed by some of the industry’s biggest names.
Matt discusses his entry into the industry, from the post room at Saatchi & Saatchi to founding BEAM TV where he was amongst the first to use the internet as a means for delivery of video, sending Ridley Scott MPEGs of the special effects applied to Gladiator!
Now, LBB offers a directory of companies in the production world but where the market was initially agencies, End users now want to know who they’re working with at every stage of their productions, so LBB allows them to handpick suppliers and creatives.
Matt also explains the thinking behind LBB’s Immortal awards – an award show done differently, where it’s hard to win but showcases the very best work in the world. Also, ahead of the LBB & Friends Beach in Cannes later this month Matt talks about what is different this year. ‘We’ve pulled production companies, agencies, post houses and, and big, big client names together to discuss how we work together.’ The panel week has been sponsored and supported by MCA and gets underway from 19th June – hopefully we’ll see you there?!

Watch Matt Cooper’s favourite ad: VW – Snow Plow

Hosted by Pat Murphy

Connect with Murphy Cobb and The Prodcast:

Murphy Cobb & Associates | The MCA Prodcast | LinkedIn | Instagram | Email

Watch Matt Cooper’s favourite ad: VW – Snow Plow

Hosted by Pat Murphy

Connect with Murphy Cobb and The Prodcast:

Murphy Cobb & Associates | The MCA Prodcast | LinkedIn | Instagram | Email

Previous Episode

Tanya Bogin - Localisation is not just adapting words, it’s adapting nuance

This week on The MCA Prodcast Pat Murphy talks with Tanya Bogin, Managing Director of Craft Worldwide in London. Tanya oversees end-to-end creative production operations, as well as global campaign localisation for IPG Partners and direct clients. She has over 14 years of experience in advertising and has been responsible for developing integrated production solutions for clients like Microsoft, Cisco, Nestle, Unilever and more.

Tanya defines her role in transcreation and localization as so much more than just translation. She says it’s ‘not just adapting words, it's adapting nuance’ which she describes as a science and an art. Localization relies on a very strong creative writing team who can adapt a global campaign for a local market whilst keeping the essence of the meaning consistent. Tanya touches on the developments with technology and how they impact the production process, She even reveals that Craft have an internal AI council that monitor for technological innovation and explore how Craft could utilize them. Tanya’s focus is on maintaining brand authenticity, and explains how she does this whilst also adopting new tech.
There’s been considerable talk in the news of AI replacing voiceovers. Whilst Tanya considers the negative implications of such tech when it comes to security and data protection, Tanya also sees huge potential for this technology when it comes to localization, allowing actors to speak in their own voice but in a language they don’t speak!
Tanya and Pat also discuss sustainability and the shift in production to try and become more sustainable. Tanya argues that there’s a process of education that’s required, for both creative and production teams, in what is achievable, and that moving sustainability considerations upstream in the creative process will ultimately lead to more sustainable productions.

Watch Tanya’s favourite ad: Nike – Dream Crazier

Hosted by Pat Murphy

Connect with Murphy Cobb and The Prodcast:

Murphy Cobb & Associates | The MCA Prodcast | LinkedIn | Instagram | Email

Next Episode

Efrain Ayala - The challenges of Diversity and Inclusion in Advertising

This week on The MCA Prodcast Pat Murphy talks to Efrain Ayala, Global Creativity and D&I Director at Reckitt. With more than 15 years of experience under their belt, Ayala is known for their strategic approach to DE&I, which not only elevates the conversation but also produces measurable progress. Their unwavering commitment to creating a more inclusive world has earned them numerous accolades, including the esteemed role of WFA Global D&I Ambassador and juror for the prestigious Glass Lion: The Lion for Change award at this year’s Cannes Lions festival.

Efrain examines the complexities surrounding social media and its governance; as social shifted from organic to paid reach how should governments and policymakers respond to regulate the online social space. From social to AI, Efrain expresses his concerns around using artificial intelligence to generate representation for minority communities. Can AI really represent and benefit marginalised communities, or is creating an avatar with a minority appearance, for example, merely a tokenistic representation of supposed diversity.
Efrain also explains his role in supporting brands with DE&I in their marketing. He describes how many brands tend to include diverse groups in their campaigns as ‘window dressing’, which can perpetuate stereotypes. Brands should instead embed diversity and equity throughout their processes in order to meaningfully represent marginalised communities.
Efrain also talks about his role as an ambassador for the World Federation of Advertisers, bringing brands and agencies together to collaborate and share experiences to enhance DE&I within the marketing space.

Watch Efrain’s favourite ad: AXE – Find your Magic

Hosted by Pat Murphy

Connect with Murphy Cobb and The Prodcast:

Murphy Cobb & Associates | The MCA Prodcast | LinkedIn | Instagram | Email