On My Radar: Connor Cassidy

What’s the most creative advertising idea you’ve seen recently?

This year's Wimbledon spot, Always Like Never Before, stands out as one of the more memorable pieces of advertising I’ve seen recently. It’s a total scroll-stopper. Director Carl Addy, McCann London and the numerous other key production partners involved pay homage to one of sports’ most premium brands in a totally unique approach to storytelling. It utilises a beautiful meld of highlights, photography, CGI, FPV, sound design, original music score and historic calls to create a visually stunning collage of Wimbledon's most iconic moments. Working with premium brands like Wimbledon can be challenging, especially with all the red tape around brand protection, but this group delivered a masterful piece to wow all tennis fans. 

What website(s) do you use most regularly? 

I’m always on X, Instagram, and TikTok, just like the rest of the world. 

What’s the most recent piece of tech that you’ve bought? 

Just picked up a pair of Rode Wireless Pro microphones to pair with my camera kit so I can capture my son’s sports and other activities with great audio. If anyone knows about our swim class content, it’s about to get a whole lot better. 

What product could you not live without? 

My MacBookPro and Leica Q are with me everywhere I go. With those two items, I can make a living and continue to do what I love. 

What’s the best film you’ve seen over the last year? 

Sara Dosa’s 2022 film, Fire of Love. It’s an incredible, family-friendly documentary about a couple of French volcanologists who fall in love while documenting volcanoes all over the world. It’s beautiful, cute, sad and scary all at once. The shots are breathtaking. 

What film do you think everyone should have seen? 

Tough question… there are so many. If I had to choose, Dazed and Confused, man. An all-American coming-of-age story with a killer soundtrack. It’s one of those movies you can throw on anytime and it never gets old. A couple of others I love are American Beauty and Inglorious Bastards. 

What’s your preferred social media platform? 

I’m on X for breaking news and social commentary and Instagram for posting my photography and videos, and keeping up with my friends. 

What’s your favourite TV show? 

Bravo’s Below Deck. If I could go back and do it all again, I’d be a yachtie — traveling to some of the prettiest parts of the world on multi-million dollar yachts and working with your hands seems like a great job as a young adult. I love the mindless drama and watching the boat captains try to problem-solve after a long day of video editing.  

What’s your favourite podcast? 

Besides the weekly NASCAR podcasts I enjoy listening to, so I can stay current on my work, I’m a religious listener to the All-In Podcast and the Shawn Ryan Show. Both tackle real geopolitical, military, cultural, and financial events with great first-hand perspectives and opinions.  

What show/exhibition has most inspired you recently? 

I live right down the street from a world-class museum — Crystal Bridges. It has one of the most incredible collections of American art right in my backyard. From colonial to contemporary, James Turrell to Warhol, there’s even a Frank Lloyd Wright home on the property. I highly recommend it to anyone spending time in Northwest Arkansas. 

If you could only listen to one music artist from now on, who would it be? 

Right now, I’ve been listening to a lot of Sturgill Simpson. He’s been the recent vibe of my life. 

If there was one thing you could change about the advertising industry, what would it be? 

Where do I begin? I’ll list a few in no apparent order. Take more risks. Do less of what people expect you to do and try something different. Stop brands from pretending to be something they're not. 16x9 and 9x6 aspect ratios are not the same, and often require different approaches. Don’t be afraid of offending people or staying 'woke'. Bring back comedy and old beer commercials. Ban prescription drug and Liberty Mutual commercials — they all suck. Stop making athletes act — they’re mostly terrible actors. Let them be themselves, embrace their personalities and get a bit more creative than making them read lines.