Martin Cerri of Walton Isaacson: An interactive idea is really good when it manages to combine technological dazzle with effectiveness

Martin Cerri, senior creative director of Walton Isaacson, talked with PRODU about his participation as a guest jury member at FIAP 2013.Cerri, who judged entries in the Interactive category, commented that this year the variety of pieces was very extensive, ranging from the traditional to experimental ones that included the creation or development of dazzling new technologies. For the creative director, the latter “are the most interesting to see and judge at an advertising festival”. “Interactive has good ideas but they’re not always effective. That’s why in this category it’s fundamental to judge both creativity and effectiveness. An idea is really good when it manages to combine these two elements” he said.As for his view of how agencies prepare to function in an increasingly digital world, Cerri said that “there’s no longer any distinction between traditional agencies and other kinds of agencies. There’s not an agency today that doesn’t have its digital department and there’s not an adman who doesn’t know what it’s all about, or what is the language code of interactive media”.On the subject of the low budgets assigned to digital media, Cerri said there is no doubt at all that the problem exists.“It would be easy to blame the clients, but I think that part of the blame must go to agencies that haven’t understood how to convince clients that this is a different reality” he said.