Matt Woodhams-Roberts

Directing your first commercial on the streets of New York City at 2 a.m. gives you a new perspective on your career, says Matt Woodhams- Roberts (’00).

“I asked one of our producers when this next step was going to happen, and he replied, ‘I don’t know; you’re the director.’ ”

At that point, Woodhams- Roberts says he realized he was no longer just part of a creative team that came up with a concept; he was the guy in charge of making the idea come to life.

Woodhams-Roberts, 26, works and lives in New York, the epicenter of the advertising world. He is a rising talent already recognized for an innovative portfolio of work.

He grew up in Berkeley, Calif. When applying to colleges, he became interested in the University of Colorado at Boulder.

“I wanted to get out of California a little bit, and I knew I couldn’t handle the East Coast, weather-wise and people-wise,” Woodhams Roberts says. “Boulder had a balance of good education and outdoor activities.”

Selecting a university turned out to be more difficult than focusing on a field of study.

“It was almost by default,” he says of discovering the Advertising sequence within the School of Journalism and Mass Communication.

Woodhams-Roberts says Associate Professor Larry Weisberg’s Principles of Advertising course showed him that he could take his love for art and cultivate it with a college education that could result in a potentially lucrative career.

“I loved the class. It was exactly what I was looking for – a combo of business, art and pop culture,” he says.

Getting deeper into his major and focusing on the creative side of advertising was an experience guided by Associate Professor Brett Robbs, Woodhams-Roberts says.

“He was my most influential teacher and by far the most important adviser,” he says.

“Obviously, he’s a very talented and creative person,” Robbs says. “His curiosity and adventurousness, that’s what helps him find unexpected ideas that stop you and make you smile.”

Within the School’s creative track, Woodhams-Roberts says he worked closely with other students such as Jennifer Scholl (’00), Laura Hausman (’00), Farrah Ferguson (’00) and Ben Wolan (‘00).

Woodhams-Roberts’ Old Style beer ad features famous streets near Wrigley Field.

After graduating from CU in 2000, Woodhams-Roberts says he headed to the Miami Ad School in San Francisco, a leading design institution. There, his skill as an art director was recognized in 2004 with three student awards: a bronze Clio Award for the Levi’s jeans Customized Fit print campaign; an award from CMYK magazine, an industry publication dedicated to showcasing young talent, for the Weber Grills campaign; and a One Show finalist award.

These played a crucial role in getting him exposure and ultimately a job offer at the New York agency Cliff Freeman and Partners, he says. Established in 1987, the agency has produced such memorable ad campaigns as Wendy’s “Where’s the Beef” and Little Caesar’s “Pizza! Pizza!” It has also been named Creative Agency of the Year six times, and the current client roster includes Fox Sports, Hollywood Video, Snapple and Pabst Brewing Co.

Woodhams-Roberts says he has been at the agency for a little over a year. New York is a world away from Boulder and represents a lifestyle that is quite different from the laid-back attitude in Colorado, Woodhams-Roberts says. It’s a contrast that is exciting, but he says he still longs for certain aspects of Boulder.

“There’s hardly a comparison. New York is crowded, crazy, busy and honking. The city is one big distraction; you can’t just hike up the Flatirons and escape,” he says. “In Colorado, it snows for a reason. You can see it up in the mountains, and you can go skiing. Here, it snows, and there’s no reason for it to be snowing; you can’t do anything with it.”

mwoodhams@clifffreeman.com