Meet Jason
Creation Director in Dubai, Jason Shatilla is definitely juggling many hats. Meet one of the driving forces behind the accomplishment of one of our biggest local projects.

What does a day in the life of Jason look like?
Everyday is a different day here, there is nothing typical from one to the next. I'm basically pulled in every direction on any given day. I balance my time daily between strategizing, planning, creating, managing, coaching, designing... it's a fine balance. It's demanding and fast paced. It's how I like it, to be honest. I'm thrown new challenges daily, so I'm required to problem-solve all day long. One thing that is common day after day however is that I am almost always booked in back-to-back meetings! :-) I'm either leading creative brainstorms, overseeing client workshops or contributing to project planning and strategizing (not counting all the last minute unforeseen meetings with executive committees). I'm hard to get a hold of if you haven't book a meeting with me! It's just the nature of this project I guess. Regardless, I try to find time here and there to make the rounds and chat with everyone on the team. There is a really great team synergy here and I make it a priority to connect with everyone as regularly as possible. Whether it's 5 or 15 min I really try to find time to catch up with everyone daily. Things change at an incredible rate here and this enables me to stay connected and in touch with everything and everyone. It's crazy… fun!
The first time's always special. What was your first GSM project?
The first project I took on when joining GSM Project was Bombardier's Museum of Ingenuity. Well, that's not entirely true... I worked on Au Sommet Place Ville Marie for a very short period of time. But the Bombardier project was what occupied me pretty much on a full time basis. It was a great primer for what to expect and what was to come.

Au Sommet Place Ville Marie

Museum of Ingenuity Joseph-Armand Bombardier
Let's say you could trade jobs with anyone at GSM. Who would it be and why?
I would trade jobs with anyone on the interactive team in a heartbeat. I love to code in my spare time... not that I have much of it these days! When I do have time I spend it architecting systems, learning about new technologies and connecting/integrating them and writing code to make it all come to life. I am fascinated by all this stuff. I love experimenting with it and seeing what can come about.
You're alone on a desert island with one GSM project. Which one, and why?
[Laugh] I am already on a desert island with a GSM Project! They just recently carved out the canal making Dubai somewhat of an island, but of course, I'm not alone. I'm surrounded by talented and inspiring people. Working on a faced-paced project with an amazing crew makes this an experience of a lifetime. I can't imagine being anywhere else or working on any other project.
