Henry Daubrez of DEPT on the Art of GenAI and More

Building a culture outside of the industry

With 20 years of experience, Henry is currently global VP of creative innovation and design at DEPT and CCO of DogStudio/DEPT. His collaborations include The New York Times, Coca-Cola, Adobe, Tomorrowland, Microsoft and Marvel. Henry also conceives art pieces through AI tools. Some of these pieces recently sold at Sotheby’s for five figures, and his work has been exhibited around the world.

We spent two minutes with Henry to learn more about his background, his creative inspirations and recent work he’s admired. 

Henry, tell us …

Where you grew up, and where you live now.

I grew up in a small town in Belgium called Vottem. I currently live in Salt Lake City, and have been here with my family for two years.

How you first realized you were creative.

In the second grade, I was asked to write what I wanted to be when I grew up. Most kids wrote things like “cop,” “firefighter” or “pilot.” But my teacher called my parents to tell them I wrote, “When I grow up, I want to be happy.” She had never seen an answer like that in her 30 years of teaching. 

A person you idolized creatively early on.

I started my career looking up to studios like North Kingdom, Firstborn, Soleil Noir, Anonymous, Odopod, Legwork. I started my professional life when Flash was still ruling the industry and it gave me a glimpse of unbridled creativity. 

A moment from high school or college that changed your life.

I am the youngest in a family of four boys. My parents, being from a different generation, had to drop any hope of having further education when they were just 17 and 18.  My dad started out working in the mines and then spent the rest of his life in a local factory. Mom took care of us the best she could. To my parents, having a college education was the chance they never had, so they encouraged all of us to follow that path. It was tougher for some of my brothers. So, when my parents noticed I was doing great academically, they figured they could finally have one of their children go to university. When I graduated high school, I ended up in computer science at a local college. The twist? I enjoyed the infrastructure, the system—and the freedom of it all. But I didn’t enjoy computer science. My epiphany came from watching the bonus DVD of the first Lord of the Rings movie. In the appendix, there is an entire segment on Weta Digital, the studio in charge of VFX. It blew my mind. I ran down the stairs, likely skipping half of them, and told my parents I had finally figured out what I wanted to do with my life.

A visual artist or band/musician you admire.

One favorite is the British doom metal band My Dying Bride. For visual artists, I love mixed-media. I recently acquired some work from Denver-based artist James Penfield. I’m also drawn to Impressionism, especially the work of Berthe Morisot because she brought a woman’s perspective to the 19th-century art scene. I also have a thing for the work of Aron Wiesenfeld.

A book, movie, TV show or podcast you recently found inspiring.

Book: Never Enough by Andrew Wilkinson, founder of the product design shop Metalab. TV: As a kid, I was what we call in Belgium a “child of the TV generation”—Alf, Knight Rider, Airwolf, MacGyver, Knights of the Zodiac and Dragon Ball. It contributed to my universe as a designer and an artist. Film: Poor Things. I find it too arty, but was inspired by the photography.

One of your favorite creative projects you’ve ever worked on.

A permanent interactive wall for the Navy Pier in Chicago. One of the creative developers involved went on to become an extremely successful generative artist, which potentially makes it a valuable piece of art.

A recent project you’re proud of. 

Our recent collaboration with Coca-Cola on an AI-assisted film to run at the Runway AI Film Festival. The brief was simple: use as many AI technologies as you can and see where you land. We built the entire thing around storytelling, the limitations of the tools at that moment, and involved traditional animators in the process. It was a huge endeavor, the team gave it everything they had and then some. 

Someone else’s work that inspired you years ago. 

Davide Quayola, whose work always seems extremely sensitive and appeals to my most delicate side.

Someone else’s work you admired lately. 

Generative artist Michael Kozlowski. He has been venturing more into the physical space, with thought-provoking and aesthetically beautiful projects.

Your main strength as a creative person.

I adapt quickly. Over the last 20 years, I have worked as a designer, project manager, producer, CEO, business developer, frontend developer, creative director, film director, creative technologist, digital artist and, more recently, a relentless explorer of GenAI. 

Your biggest weakness.

Creatives often feel pressure to adapt and multitask. We constantly have to juggle jobs, tasks and responsibilities. I recognize that my ADHD might have been triggered by that nonstop pressure to create, and I’ve put mechanisms in place to protect myself.

A mentor who helped you navigate the industry.

Claudio Guglieri, Brijan Powell, David Navarro (not the guitarist, the designer), Haraldur Thorleifsson (aka Halli) and Robbin Cenijn.

What you’d be doing if you weren’t in advertising.

If I was independently wealthy, an artist. If not, an architect.