Alumni spotlight: From blockbusters to brand management

Pat Langton and Lauren Phillips graduated from different RMIT courses a decade apart. Now, they find themselves working together at the top of their game in marketing and advertising.

There’s passion in the words of people who honestly love their jobs. For Pat Langton and Lauren Phillips, it’s owing to a day-to-day sense of creativity and diversity.

Their respective roles in advertising and marketing could mean anything from producing a viral social media campaign to coming up with a catchy TV ad jingle.

“I call myself an ad nerd, I just love advertising,” said Langton.

“In advertising we draw on our experiences to bring creativity out, so I love what I do. I feel grateful that I get to do a job I really enjoy and love doing. I don’t think many people can say that all the time.”

Shortly after Langton became a father he was asked to work on a campaign for a product that alleviated baby constipation. Together with a copywriter, who was also a new parent, he wrote a song and produced an online music video.

Their work was recognised with a Cannes Lion Award – considered to be the top global awards in the advertising and creative communications industry.

It was also a massive achievement for Langton, who was working in London at the time and had set himself the goal of winning a Cannes Lion Award.

“It was great because when you write down a goal you kind of hope to achieve it, but it’s not always easy,” he said.

“Our campaign was very different to the category if you look at a brand like Huggies, which is lovely and nice. We did something more fun and comical because everyone loves a laugh. So we got some really good insight and the strategy was spot on.”

Langton graduated from a Bachelor of Arts (Advertising), now the Bachelor of Communication (Advertising), in 2005. He enrolled after taking three gap years to work and relax after high school.

Pat Langton sitting in a studio for a photo wearing a dark grey suit and white t-shirt.

It was the perfect course for me because it really drew out my creativity in a great way. It all just happened at RMIT and it’s guided my career ever since.

Langton’s path crossed with that of Phillips when he hired her to work at Magnum Opus Partners (MoP), which was recently acquired by HERO, a creative agency representing big brands such as Menulog and Centrum Vitamins.

Langton is a creative director at HERO, while Phillips is the account director at HERO.

Lauren Phillips wearing rainbow wings and a 'LOVE' t-shirt at a Disney pride event.

Before landing the position, Phillips, a 2015 graduate of the Bachelor of Business (Marketing), which is now the Bachelor of Business, had just finished working at Disney for six and a half years. She wanted to move away from a big brand and work for an agency.

“I had done some soul-searching and knew I wanted a change, so I was applying for jobs and in between lockdowns I found MoP,” she explained.

“I just wanted something completely different. I’d done client side, I’d done big companies where there’s a million stakeholders and you work with global teams where things move a lot slower.

“So I wanted to try a small business, agency side, content and creative and I got all of those with MoP.”

Phillips had worked on a broad range of projects at Disney, from campaigns for blockbuster films including the Disney’s remake of The Lion King and Marvel’s Thor: Ragnarok to retail brands and activations.

Her position at Disney came about after she did a one-year, RMIT-backed internship there – a career move she credits with kick-starting her career.

“I don’t know if I would have gone out and got a full-time job if it wasn’t for that,” Phillips said.

“I’m so grateful RMIT offers that and helps you find and do those internships. The study is actually crafted so you actually make the most of the internship and you apply it to the work you do.

“I made great friends and connections within the industry – people that I still know and speak to today, which is really nice.”

Since her start at MoP, Phillips has now rounded out her experience to work with smaller companies. This opportunity has allowed her to see the inner workings of a business and proving again how diverse a career in marketing can be.

“One of the things I love and I think is an achievement is I’ve had the opportunity to work with a lot of different people and a lot of different brands,” she said.

“I’ve been able to soak up little bits and pieces from all of them, which has helped me be where I am today.”

If you’re an RMIT alumni and want to share your career experiences, let us know.

Story: Kate Jones

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