Alumnus Spotlight - Mark Malabrigo, BFA '82
Hometown: East Rutherford, N.J.
Year Graduated: 1982
School: 91视频 School of Visual Communication
Major: Visual Communication
Current job title and location: Group Art Supervisor, Neon-NYC
What do you do? Other than pushing and bullying pixels across the screen?
I spearhead the creative on my assigned brand (under NDA so I cannot discuss nor mention.)
Over the years, I鈥檝e become the go-to person for video, audio and animation, a position that I鈥檝e cultivated and developed within the agency.
Tell us about your career path. Which one? I think I鈥檝e had four.
After graduating, I packed up my 鈥74 Plymouth Fury and moved to New York to become a photographer鈥檚 assistant. After a few years, I started to take on fashion and music clients such as Stern鈥檚, Sony, Virgin Records, MTV Networks, etc...
As technology started to take hold, I started to focus on technology and was later hired by MTV Networks to manage corporate interactive projects. My team, comprised of two OU graduates, Chris McKenzie and Mugur Marculescu, helped develop the industry-first prototype for a streaming video player that eventually became MTV Overdrive, which became the platform template for all the Viacom channels.
After MTVN, I produced independent projects for Miss Universe Organization (yes, I鈥檝e met Donald Trump) and Christie鈥檚 Auction House.
Which brings me to Neon鈥 a complete change in direction. I have no formal training in graphic design, yet the managing partner brought in as an art director. Since then, I鈥檝e grown to lead the creative on certain brands, as well as expanding the agency鈥檚 video capabilities.
By the way, I miss my Plymouth. You could鈥檝e fit a whole studio apartment in that car.
What made you come to 91视频? Were there other places you considered? I never really considered any other school. I was transferring from a community college for engineering when I met the recruiter from OHIO, who spoke about the fine arts photo department at (then) Siegfried Hall. I was intrigued and, eventually, switched majors.
How did the Scripps College of Communication equip you with the skills you needed to succeed? The core concepts of fine art and commercial photography were certainly invaluable. However, as poor starving art students, we were short of resources so we became adept at improvisation and invention out of necessity. When you don't have resources, you learn to be resourceful. 2x4s, shower curtains, duct tape, and drywall screws were the four elements of creation. Go ask Gary Kirksey, a friend through college and my roommate in the early New York years.
What about your experiences here was so memorable? Should I ever mention Court Street? Or playing racquetball with Terry Eiler for grades (kidding)? Maybe watching a photography set catch on fire because someone forgot to turn off their hot lights?
I had forgotten how beautiful the campus was. I had the opportunity to come back and speak to students years ago and said to myself, 鈥淗ow could I forget this?鈥 For those of you walking around campus with your faces buried in your phone, please look up and take notice where you are. You, ladies and gentlemen, are luckier than you realize.
What advice do you have for current students?
- Define the terms of your success and happiness. Don鈥檛 let social media say otherwise. And, for goodness sake, don鈥檛 be in such a rush.
- The answer is 鈥渘o鈥 if you don鈥檛 ask.
- Turn your phone off.