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Great ideas are at the heart of all brilliant creative work. They can inspire action, create a new way to live, last a lifetime, and even change the world. 

But these ideas don't appear as if by magic. They take bravery, collaboration, resilience, imagination and more, which means sometimes it's easier to play it safe and recreate what's gone before. 

We'll be breaking down the process into five main steps that will help you understand how great ideas happen - everything from the first inkling to the final feedback. 


Part 1: Think It

The first part of this course takes us back to the beginning of the creative process and we'll discuss how ideas are born with a range of creatives, including Tony Davidson, ECD at Wieden+Kennedy London, and legendary ad-man Patrick Collister.

Part 2: Commercialise It 

In Part 2 we'll look at how to make ideas that thrive in a commercial landscape. Alongside our course leaders, we'll hear from marketing expert Daryl Fielding and see examples of brave ideas from across the world. 

Part 3: Create It 

During Part 3 you will start doing, and bring your big idea to life with the help of the team behind Google's award-winning NSynth Super project and graphic design genius Jim Sutherland.  

Part 4: Push It

Once you have your big idea it's easy to stop there. Part 4 will help you keep going and push your idea further than ever before, with advice from over 20 of the worlds best creative brains, including ad guru Ben Priest. You will also get access to a brand new creative tool. 

Part 5: Refine It

Part 5 will guide you through the scariest part of the creative process: getting feedback. A trio of top creatives, including the brilliant Becky McOwen-Banks from FCB Inferno, share their experiences (good and bad), and our course leaders will guide you through giving feedback to each other. 


By the end of the five modules, you'll have heard from over 50 of the creative industry's smartest minds, have a toolkit of tried and tested methods of creating big ideas, worked - in real-time - on a brief with your fellow participants and have take-away tools to help create world-changing ideas over and over again.


Who is this course for?

This course is for everyone who wants to understand the importance of great creative ideas, and how to have them. It's particular relevant for those at the start of their creative careers, specifically in advertising, marketing and design.

Course curriculum

  • 1

    INTRODUCTION

  • 2

    THINK IT

    • Welcome to Part 1: Think It

    • It all starts with the idea

    • D&AD Black Pencil-winning ideas

    • Ideas: the process

    • How ideas are born

    • Tony Davidson: Brand ideas

    • Patrick Collister: The connection theory

    • Balls of imagination

    • Inspiration = Ideas

    • Keeping curious

    • Part 2 prep
  • 3

    CONTEXTULISE IT

    • Welcome to Part 2: Contextualise It

    • Having relevant ideas

    • Leila Fataar: Culture and trends

    • Tony Davidson: Standing for something

    • Exploring relevant ideas

    • Caroline Pay: Rule breaking and disruption

    • Dave King: How to be brave

    • Unpicking creative bravery

    • Brave ideas in action

    • Daryl Fielding: Long lasting ideas

    • It all starts with the brief

    • Bad briefs?

    • Project development: Breaking down your brief
  • 4

    CREATE IT

    • Welcome to Part 3: Create It

    • Bringing ideas to life

    • How to have good ideas

    • Jim Sutherland: Playful ideas

    • Playful ideas in action

    • Creative collaboration

    • Google Creative Lab: Collaborative ideas in action

    • Paul Monaghan: Collaborating with your audience

    • Chris Bovill: Building the right team

    • Successful client collaboration

    • Mythbusting: Collaboration

    • Project Development: Creating ideas
  • 5

    PUSH IT

    • Welcome to Part 4: Push It

    • Where to go next with your ideas

    • Pushing ideas

    • Dave Buonaguidi: How to push your ideas

    • It's ok to fail?

    • Ben Priest: Learning from failure

    • Daryl Fielding: All part of the journey

    • 99% Shit

    • Getting unstuck

    • Creative prompts

    • Project Development: Pushing your ideas
  • 6

    REFINE IT

    • Welcome to Part 5: Refine It

    • Where to take your ideas

    • Feedback: good and bad

    • Giving great feedback

    • Dave Birss: Judgement

    • Idea consequences

    • Creative Resilience

    • Dave Trott: Going the extra yard

    • Brief development: Sharing your ideas

    • After the idea

Instructors

Founder and Chief Experience Designer, Ten Percent Chaos

Arif Haq

Arif Haq designs live and virtual events that aim to build team capabilities with a particular specialism in the area of creativity. His work to develop Heineken’s Creative Leadership programme was described by Campaign as, "A refreshingly serious approach to the business of creativity." and by AdAge as having, “helped the brewer scale creative heights, culminating with the 2015 Cannes Lions Marketer of the Year award”. His past experience includes Partner at Freud Communications, the founding head of the Creative Capabilities consultancy practises at Contagious, as well as a decade in brand management at PepsiCo. He also spent time as an advertising treatment writer, giving him a relatively unique client-agency-production-consultant view of the creative industries.

Julie Seal

After 15 years in advertising Julie flipped over to the other side, joining Facebook & Instagram as Creative Strategist. As part of the Creative Shop team Julie helps brands, ad agencies and media agencies to make the best possible creative work for the platforms through consultancy and co-creation. In her spare time Julie also writes plays, books and screenplays.

Nick Eagleton

Co-founder of brand studio Saboteur and formerly Creative Partner at award-winning global brand agency Superunion, Nick has 20 years experience in branding and design for everything from global financial services to the arts. Since 2015 he has been leading 'Ideas Ideas Ideas', D&AD's creative thinking Masterclass. Somehow this all started with a degree in sculpture.

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FAQ

  • Who is this course for?

    The Art and Science of Ideas is for anyone who wants to understand the importance of great creative ideas. It's designed for all creatives who need to know how to have brilliant ideas, those at the start of their creative careers, specifically in advertising, marketing and design and any in-house creatives wanting to push themselves, and the briefs they receive.

  • Is this course full-time/part-time?

    This course is designed to take around 20 hours to complete. We'd recommend you tackling one module per week, over 5 weeks, but you can also take this course at your own pace - all in one day, split over weeks or even across several months.

  • Will I get a certificate at the end of this course?

    Yes! Once you've completed the course you can request a certificate.

  • How long do I have access?

    You have 6 months to complete this course.

  • What does my tuition cover?

    Your tuition covers access to the course for a full 6 months, all the video content and downloadable worksheets.

  • Can I change my order?

    If you'd like to make any changes to your order then contact the team at [email protected] and we can help.

  • How can I contact an instructor?

    This course is self-directed and designed for you to complete by yourself, with the support of peers learning alongside you. If you need help, get in touch with one of the D&AD team at [email protected].