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A New Generation of Advertising Begins at the Creative Circus: Announcing the Launch of Their Interactive Development Program

"We worked closely with top firms in the Interactive industry while building this program," said David Haan, executive director of The Creative Circus. "They told us they need a new breed of developers with good creative instincts who can work well with creative teams, and those are exactly the types of skills we're teaching our students."

The result was a new developer curriculum that prepares students to handle the real-world demands of the discipline by replicating the communicative relationship between the person building codes and the creative team.

Founded in 1995 in Atlanta, Georgia, The Creative Circus is an accredited, two-year portfolio-building educational program for the creative side of the advertising, design and photography industries. In a stimulating, energetic building that feels more like an agency, design firm or studio than a traditional school, future creatives build portfolios that help them to land the best jobs in the field.

"Developers possess a unique skill set. They're both creators and problem solvers," said Haan. "Our new curriculum allows students to take these ideas and bring them to life, melding their technical and creative talents."

The industry has long had a rift between the technical side of advertising and marketing and the creative side. Code developers were often kept separate from design teams and rarely did the two communicate; but today's industry is no longer segmented.

The first year of the program expands student skills in all areas of coding and development. The student will learn all the critical scripting and programming languages in use today and will develop an understanding of the most cutting-edge platforms that turn designs into reality.

"We expect graduates of this program to be versatile in all the necessary applications across all relevant mediums to creatively engage their audiences," said Haan. "We've got the best and the brightest, and the industry is very eager to see our graduates."

The second year of the program will focus on communication skills - teaching students to become an integral part of the creative team. Students will work on projects developed in conjunction with copywriters, art directors, designers and photographers - just as they would in real industry positions.

"By helping our students refine their communication skills, as well as their technical skills, we are better preparing them to further their careers," said Haan. "In future jobs, they will posses the talent and education needed to work across departments and within creative teams to deliver quality projects to clients."

Interactive expert, Michael Ellan, has been tapped to lead the program. Ellan has been at the interactive development forefront for more than a decade. He began his career as a designer and has since been thrust into the developing side, and therefore, is well versed in all aspects of interactive design and development. His work for top players like Pfizer, Coca Cola, Johnson & Johnson, Comcast, Harley Davidson and Discovery Chanel has resulted in nearly every industry award, including the prestigious International Webby.

As a gifted problem solver, Ellan continues to explore, and leverage emerging technologies while staying grounded by today's relevant tools and techniques.

To graduate, students of the Interactive Development Program must have a full grasp of object oriented programming. They must be able to leverage streaming technologies and to develop applications across multiple mediums. Alumni of The Creative Circus will not only be armed with knowledge of advanced technology, but be able to communicate with creative teams fluently and productively.

"The Holy Grail for ad execs used to be helping to create a Super Bowl TV spot," said Chris Gomersall, a senior vice president and executive creative director for Moxie Interactive. "This year, the Super Bowl was the most-watched TV program in history, with a viewership of 106.5 million but more than 400 million people log in to Facebook each day."

Interactive is the future of advertising, and The Creative Circus is creating a new breed of designers and developers who are unique to a changing industry. The Creative Circus has developed a program that not only caters to the needs of the industry, but also to the needs of its students.

"They're not just focusing on what's happening right now, but what will be happening in the next few years," said Nicola Smith, director of participant insights and emerging trends at Moxie Interactive. "The Creative Circus really sets students up for what the industry might be as they graduate and the future instead of just what it is."

"The real key is that digital is not being taught as a separate medium, but as one component of a 360 view of advertising. It is about the strategic thinking involved with active advertising and being able to apply this type of thinking to different environments," said Smith.

At the end of the two-year program, The Creative Circus' interactive grads will be armed with experience and proudly carry portfolios (more often links to their web sites and pdfs) that get them jobs. It's no wonder the Circus can boast a 90+ percent job placement rate.

For more information on The Interactive Development Program and The Creative Circus, please call 866-407-0296 or visit www.creativecircus.edu.

About The Creative Circus

The CREATIVE CIRCUS is an advertising and design portfolio school located in Atlanta, Georgia. The school's two year curriculum provides students with an educational environment that enables them to receive real-world agency experience incorporating design, interactive, photography, copywriting and art direction. The CREATIVE CIRCUS challenges the definition and development of design and creative solutions. For more information call 866-407-0296 or visit www.creativecircus.edu.

The Creative Circus
Rebecca Oppenheimer or Lillian Ansley, 404-880-4600