When did you know that this career was what you wanted to do?
I’ve always had a wide range of interests, and advertising is one of the few careers that lets you explore all of them. The beauty of this field is that any project can be about absolutely anything—from live-streaming someone painting hamburgers to helping people contact their Congressional representatives using a font made from their gerrymandered districts. It’s chaotic, hard to explain, and endlessly surprising. When did I know this was the career for me? When I realized that bringing ideas to life isn’t just a job—it’s a way to live. (Though getting paid for it now and then doesn’t hurt.)

What was your first job?
Outside of working at my family’s restaurant—and a handful of decidedly “odd” jobs—my first real “job” job at 19 was with a very indie agency, doing desktop publishing in Quark. I spent countless hours digging through stock photo sites, learning how to cut people out of their backgrounds and wrap text around them, as one does. I occasionally wrap text around myself as a form of therapy. I recently learned that my design hero, David Carson, still designs in Quark. Just goes to show: it’s never really about the software—it’s about the vision behind it.

What was a milestone project for you?
One of my milestone projects was earning my first Lion for “Mean Stinks,” an anti-bullying campaign for Secret Deodorant featuring Zendaya. We united hundreds of schools across the country—and even internationally—through a live assembly that rallied students to stand up against “mean.” The real reward came in the years that followed, as the campaign’s message continued to resonate and spark conversations with students and teachers long after the awards stopped coming in. They took the program our team built and kept it going on their own. How cool is that?

What’s your dream project?
My dream project is one that genuinely helps real people—not work that exploits a social issue for awards, but something sincere that drives real change and supports a meaningful cause. I’ve been fortunate to donate my time to efforts I truly believe in. There’s also a certain freedom—and even a bit of mischief—that comes with doing good without worrying about taking personal credit.

What’s the first thing you look at when you review an entry?
The first thing I consider when reviewing a w3 Awards entry is whether it’s been submitted to the right category. A brilliant idea can shine across multiple categories, but it’s important that each submission fully aligns with the criteria of the one it’s entered in. Big agencies, please don’t flood categories and drown out the little guys. And judges, don’t fall in love with a great idea and ignore the category!

Creative experts like Kevin are ready to dive into your best digital work. Submit your entries by Friday, June 13th to get your projects in front of the Jury.