Pastilla’s Creative Director- Rudy Manning

About Project

As Pastilla's Co-Founder and Creative Director, Rudy has already made notable contributions as a creative entrepreneur, running an agency that delivers award-winning work and makes waves in the public and private sectors. But most importantly, Rudy's legacy is what’s considered an Individual Achievement. He's actively developing programs where he can advocate for BIPOC artists and creatives and be a familiar face to the next generation of designers. There are only a handful of BIPOC creatives in the world of his caliber, and I believe his nomination sends a positive signal to future generations of the kind of impact they can have.

Previous to starting Pastilla, Rudy has worked for a range of companies:

1998 Reverb Studio, Designer
Los Angeles, California | www.reverbstudio.com

1998 Think Inc. Designer
Los Angeles, California

1998 – 2000 Quickband Networks, Art Director
Los Angeles, California

2000 – 2004 Nokia Design Center, Design Consultant
Calabassas, California | www.nokia.com

In collaboration with the NDC in-house design team, Rudy has worked on projects that included: redesigning an interface of the Nokia media terminal; designing a limited edition package; designing the retail graphics for Nokia stores in Asia; and also art directed, designing, and producing the concept spots that marketed Nokia mobile phones.

In his 20+ year career, Rudy has collected a global body of award-winning work and built Pastilla, a creative digital agency now in the final stages of getting acquired by an international agency network.

Pastilla, founded in 2004, plays a pivotal role in shaping some of the world's most recognizable products and organizations, including Microsoft, ESPN, Disney, SAP, Nokia, Coca-Cola, Golden Globes, City of LA, and Pivotal Ventures & Cedars-Sinai, in naming a few.

Rudy is the rare hybrid of a brilliant creative director and dynamic business leader. Rudy owns the ability to masterfully weave between design disciplines to execute ideas not bound by traditional media. This approach has inspired many creatives under his leadership to put Pastilla on the world stage as an agency.

Some notable projects include launching the Microsoft Surface Tablet and Microsoft Band, redesigning the Golden Globes Site, and branding PlayLA, a premier youth sports equity movement with the City of LA and LA28 Olympics.

While published internationally in design and online publications, Rudy has won and been nominated for multiple awards, including the Art Director's Club, W3 Award, Telly Award, Print International Design, HOW Awards, IDX Showcase, THEA Award, Creativity International, and Davey Awards. His contributions to enriching the design community, both locally and internationally, also involve speaking at events including SXSW, ArtCenter Berlin, ACG Design China, and AIGA.

Rudy's career sets an example for the next generation of BIPOC creatives in advertising, and he's making it his mission to share his story and actively equip and educate young creatives locally. As an educator, he has taught at the prestigious ArtCenter College of Design's Graphic Design program for eight years. His students' work has been honored and recognized by The Type Directors Club, Communication Arts, The One Show, and the ADC.

Recently, he was named Board President at Art Division, an LA-based nonprofit committed to training and supporting underserved adult youth in the arts, primarily Latino immigrants. Rudy aims to extend Art Division's fine arts to graphic design offering, creating even more opportunities for BIPOC students interested in advertising and design.

Furthermore, Rudy co-created MYCAD (Multicultural Youth in Creative Advertising and Design). A program dedicated to introducing design and advertising to high-school-aged multicultural youth and helping them develop tools for success and build a career in an industry where BIPOCs are often underrepresented.