First Five Rungs launches ‘Yarns with…’ video content series giving millenials in advertising a sneak peek into the industry’s top minds

Comms Council Industry support group, First Five Rungs, have launched its latest project; a video content series titled ‘Yarns with…’ interviewing senior figures in the advertising and communications industry with quick-fire questions to bridge the gap between juniors in the industry and senior leaders.

The first video launched this morning with interview participants Andrew Reinholds, managing partner of OMD, and David McCallen, head of strategy at OMD, ‘yarning’ over a morning coffee and answering industry relevant questions. The two shared some interesting industry insights and words of wisdom, as well as trying to settle the age-old debate of ‘does pineapple really belong on pizza?’ The video is light-hearted, snappy and a great piece of digestible content.

WATCH THE FIRST VIDEO

The First Five Rungs team noticed how young industry members often feel detached from senior leadership and that, because of their position, these senior figures seem unapproachable or unrelatable. The ‘Yarns with…’ video content series aims to bridge this gap and show ‘newbies’ in the industry that senior leaders are approachable and have a lot of great wisdom to impart, they just need to ask. The videos are also a nice reminder that the senior leaders started out in junior roles once upon a time too. A big part of the First Five Rung’s mission is to future proof the industry, and these videos help by sharing the stories of how CEOs and MDs made it to where they are and shapes what success and leadership looks like in our industry. There are real learnings and anecdotes captured in the interviews, making the senior leaders more approachable, as well as offering a real inspiration to newbies for what their futures in advertising could look like.

Says Harriette Hanson, chair of the First Five Rungs group: “It’s daunting when you’re a grad and you feel like a bit of a nobody in the agency. We want to remind grads and young industry members that this is absolutely not the case and that they’d be surprised, but the senior leaders are actually super approachable and have a lot of learnings to share. There’s nothing more valuable than striking up a conversation and realizing you actually have more in common than you might’ve originally thought.”

Building on the strong Comms Council and AUT partnership, the First Five Rungs team engaged with several third year AUT film students to help with the production of the videos. AUT students Dominique Asser, Jasper Hankins, Diana Simumpande, Campbell Thompson, Josh Meredith, and Raman Mahi took the First Five Rungs ‘Yarns with…’ concept and helped them bring it to life, enjoying a hands-on film production experience and getting in front of some big industry players. Under the First Five Rungs watch, the students were responsible for filming the interviews and editing them working within the frameworks set by the group.

Adds Hanson: “The ‘Yarns with…’ videos were so fun to produce and we’re so glad they have a raw, real feel. We didn’t want them to look too polished. The whole point is that these guys feel relatable (because they are!), and that definitely comes through in the rustic editing. The AUT students who helped us did a brilliant job and I think they really enjoyed being involved.”

There are three more videos rolling out over the next few months, so keep an eye on the First Five Rungs Facebook page where they’ll be revealed. The team are also planning on filming more in 2019, spanning more agencies and more great personalities. Watch this space.