Today we’d like to introduce you to Morgan Parker.
Morgan, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I knew from a young age that I wanted to speak to millions of people. After watching a spot from an Ad Council campaign at 14, I had this weird idea that I could change the world. I even drew up a plan, mapping out where I would start and how it would end: “Morgan Changes the World.” How I would actually get there, I didn’t know. Looking back, I couldn’t yet articulate that a television ad had impacted not just my perception, but my behavior.
Eventually, something clicked—I realized that someone had made that commercial. It was someone’s actual job.
I’d always been creative. I used to make bracelets, bind books out of recycled paper, and paint on the floor while watching my favorite TV shows. A few months after sketching out my grand plan, I attended the student show at the College for Creative Studies and came across the work in their Advertising Department. Four years later, I would end up attending that very same college to study Advertising with a focus in art direction.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
I’m grateful for the path I’ve been on. From internships to landing my first “big-girl” job, my journey has been about as smooth as one can expect working as a creative in advertising. Still, one of my biggest struggles has been staying creative outside of work. Burnout is real, and I’ve learned that if I give all of my creative energy to larger corporations, I will never feel entirely fulfilled. In college, your head is down; you learn to focus on what you’ve been assigned and block out all other distractions—even the things that make you happy. While that builds discipline, it can also create poor habits that lead straight to burnout.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Working in the social media space, I’m at my desk roughly 30% of the time; the other 70% is spent behind a camera or on set. Being on set is easily the most stressful, most fun, and most rewarding part of my job. A typical shoot involves an early call time, syncing up with producers and cinematographers to review what we plan to capture, and lots of coffee—or in my case, matcha. It’s a fast past industry, and last year my team produced and shared well over 300 pieces of content. It’s pretty cool that I make videos, travel around the country, and meet great people all while getting paid to do so.
Over the span of my career across five different companies, I’m most proud of the relationships I’ve built. A video that took well over 100 hours of planning might go unlisted in less than a year, but the people I spent that time with will stay with me forever.
Attending art and design schools from middle school through college has left me with an incredibly diverse network, and I am nothing without my community. Past, present, or future, they will always impact everything I touch.
What sort of changes are you expecting over the next 5-10 years?
There’s a lot of chatter about AI when it comes to the future of advertising. While technology will certainly play a role, people still crave realness—and that desire will only increase as we navigate an uncanny valley world.
I’m really excited to see how technology advances beyond our phones, and the new ways it will influence advertising.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.morganaeriel.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cameratwerk/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/morganaeriel
