A few weeks ago, Kill Boring Dead enticed ad-curious people with the offer, “Fancy a career in advertising but prefer to commit to a short time first?” What??
The offer, Work Here For One Hour, put those who applied inside a ‘fictional’ agency adventure for one hour from 6pm, Tuesday 13 to Friday 16 October at its Collingwood HQ for Melbourne Fringe 2026.
“For aspiring creatives, it’s an opportunity to step inside an independent agency, meet the people behind the work and experience the energy of tackling a brief together, with a generous helping of Fringe absurdity,” the agency explained.
… “We’ve also landed a huge new account, the brief needs cracking and everyone in the room will have a part to play.”
It was a mad and intriguing idea. Was it recruitment, self-promo, solving a brief, supporting Melbourne Fringe, giving back to the industry…?
So The Stable followed up to find out how it panned out. Marcus Wllis, CEO of Kill Boring Dead provided the answers:
The Stable: Who/what were you hoping to attract?
Marcus Willis: Honestly, nothing, and that was the point. We just wanted to see what would happen. It wasn’t a lead-gen exercise or a recruitment drive. It was a fun creative outlet.
The Stable: Why did you stage it in the Melbourne Fringe?
Marcus Willis: I’ve done fringe shows before, in Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth Fringe, but this is the first time I’ve combined my professional work with fringe, and I absolutely loved it.
The Stable: How did the idea work out for you? Were there some surprises?
Marcus Willis: The biggest surprise was how late it all came together. When we registered the show, all we knew was that it would be called Work Here for One Hour. We had no real idea of the concept until a couple of weeks out, when it all just clicked and we suddenly knew exactly what to do. And it sold out.
The Stable: How does the exercise fit in with KBD’s brand personality?
Marcus Willis: We want to be constantly experimenting with creativity and different formats, and this was a perfect opportunity to do exactly that.
Here are more answers to your questions:
For those who don’t read IG comments:
…and Willis’ takeout:
Here’s a glimpse of the actual event:
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