Since joining Walton Isaacson in 2021, associate strategy director Sean Pitts has made efforts to integrate the agency’s creative and strategy departments. One way is through “Creative Explorations,” a concept that Pitts, 31, used at previous agencies and was inspired by Pixar’s “Braintrust” approach to creating movies.
“The idea of it is to give a level playing field after a briefing for everybody on the creative team to ask questions,” Pitts said.
As a result, Pitts puts together mood boards and presentations of “outstanding creative” from the industry.
“We break it down and see, OK, are there elements of this stuff that work for what we’re trying to do and how can that help us inspire to make the work a little bit better,” Pitts said.
Pitts, who is also a photographer and has his own men’s grooming channels online, also created guidelines on how other departments can give constructive feedback to the creative team.
Pitts works with clients including Lexus, McDonald’s and Doritos. Last year, he led strategy for a Lexus campaign that launched the automaker’s first EV. The campaign included the character Okoye from Marvel Studios’ “Black Panther” franchise.
Pitts also created the strategic framework that led to Lexus sponsoring Beyoncé’s Renaissance World Tour.
Lexus has activations at most U.S. stops of the tour that include a custom Lexus LC, a photo booth and a karaoke booth. The agency brought the tour to the client’s attention and correlated the fact that the automaker was introducing a new line of vehicles with the theme of Beyoncé’s tour.
“Beyoncé’s in that same space, she’s in this renaissance, meaning a reinvention of who Beyoncé is and how she represents herself to the world,” Pitts said while discussing Lexus. “The similarity between those two situations. That’s what we leaned into.”
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