Leilani Horthy Banks’ Creative LIAisons Diary #1: Fear and loathing (and learning) in Las Vegas

Leilani Horthy Banks, Junior Art Director, Clemenger BBDO, Sydney (formerly DDB Australia) ~ current CB Australian 2025 Agency of the Year ~ is representing Australia at the 2026 Creative LIAisons program in Las Vegas, featuring some of the world’s most respected creative directors as speakers. Here, Leilani reports exclusively for Campaign Brief.

Vegas, Day 1, 11:49pm.

It’s 11 minutes to midnight, I’m 38 hours into my first ever trip to Las Vegas, and my suitcase looks like a mobile police narcotics lab… if the police dealt almost exclusively in stationary that is.

I have three Artline pens, one and a half notebooks, five semi-blunt lead pencils, no pencil sharpener, one eraser, two laptops, one pair of running shoes, an assortment of collared shirts, skirts and sequins (after all, it’s Vegas…) … plus around twenty-five loose sheets of notes scrawled on various bits of hotel stationary, and the miniature pen that had done the scrawling, after forgetting to actually bring any of the aforementioned stationary along to the conference sessions. And also three paperback novels (one of which, if you have not already guessed, is a half-read copy of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas).

Fortunately, this is not a Hunter S. Thompson novel, and my brain is fueled not with a cacophony of amphetamines but on the thrill of a day spent amongst brilliant young minds. Plus a little jetlag. And a touch of tequila. But definitely mostly probably just the thrill of learning and discussing and debating and contemplating the insane and all-consuming thing that is creativity. Hunter eat your heart out.

If my notes are anything to go by, there was much to be learned. Matt Murphy told us to see the apple 100 different ways. To be the most curious, and to try new things to trick yourself into an unlock. Apparently marble carving is a good place to start.

Shelley Smoler said to not wait for luck, but to give ourselves more opportunities for luck to find us. And to never stay in our lane. Ali Rez talked of doing the legwork, of figuring out how to do the thing and putting in the extra effort to get it done. Aaron Starkman mostly just plugged Rethink, and his new hotline 1800 C.R.A.F.T.S. (is the idea Clear, Relevant, Achievable, Fresh, True and Shareable), visit the Rethink website to learn more for only $1.99.

But seriously, much like the sprawling mass of glittering lights and dizzying sites below my hotel window – shout out to the beautiful Treasure Island hotel –  it was a truly wild and wonderful day. And so the last little nugget I’ll leave you with is to ‘be unreasonable’, courtesy of Rob Galluzzo. He said other great things, as did many other brilliant and inspiring people, but that one stuck with me most. I think, right now, at this present moment in my career, it is just what I needed to hear.

That is all for now. To the bar fridge I go.

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