It’s been said that AI is propelling us into the Creativity Age – What is your take on that?

AO: With AI, the constraints of time and budget fall away — making space for ideas that once felt out of reach. The work we’re seeing across marketing and advertising is just the start. When the industry fully taps in, we’re poised for a creative renaissance unlike any before.

MF: Get ready — we are only at the starting gate.

How do you see the relationship between human creativity and AI in production today?

MF: It’s worth recognizing that AI-driven work and traditionally driven work provide alternate outputs. There’s a lot of debate on whether AI is replacing human creativity. Right now at least, humans are still making the choices. AI responds to inputs, so ultimately, a creative person is directing the results. When I look at something that an iconic photographer shoots versus the same subject matter expertly developed by an AI artist, they’re completely different styles of work — and both can be perfect for a brand, just in different ways. It’s more about the person behind the lens or the person directing the machine — that’s what really counts.

There are some AI programs that are “fully automatic” — they come up with creative concepts and execute automatically — but they often feel generic and boring. They lack the big new idea, the special concept, or the visual appeal that makes a brand or product identity distinct.

AO: AI helps take the pressure off by speeding up ideation and execution, but it still needs direction. Without someone steering it, it’s not going anywhere meaningful. The best results come when human creativity lays the foundation — and AI takes it to the next level.

What parts of your experience, training, and references do you draw upon the most when working with AI? What skills have become even more valuable in the age of AI?

MF: For me, it’s the art school and fine art training. When you understand lighting, anatomy, and perspective, it’s easier to guide the systems and outcomes.

AO: After 20 years of watching what clients chase and what they kill, I can spot a strong image in seconds. Art school gave me the fundamentals, but taste isn’t something you can fake. With GenAI, it’s not about pressing a button — it’s about having the eye to know when it’s wrong, and the voice to push it somewhere better. If you don’t know how to give feedback, the tool’s useless.

How do you know when something AI-generated has potential or not? How does Industrial Color approach transforming good AI output into exceptional brand assets?

AO: Our creative instincts are backed by decades of experience, so we recognize instantly what resonates and what doesn’t. That, combined with deep production know-how, lets us map the most effective path forward. Whether it’s AI, traditional production, or a mix of both, we know how to bring the right tools together to make the work stronger.

At the end of the day, it comes down to truly understanding the brand — its guidelines, personality, presence, and what it stands for. From there, I focus on merging that foundation with what makes a compelling, forward-thinking image that resonates in today’s visual culture. At Industrial Color, we keep a hyper-critical eye on everything we create. If we’re not sure something hits the mark, we don’t share it — we continue refining until it feels undeniably strong. AI helps us get there faster, but the bar we hold ourselves to never changes.

MF: The only additional point I’ll make is that limitations can sometimes lead to interesting results — and you only find those by experimenting and testing.

A lot has been written about the explosion of marketing channels and content formats, and how difficult it’s been for creative teams to meet the demand for new deliverables. How does AI transform the status quo? How has the dynamic between creative and production teams evolved with AI automation and generative creation?

AO: Creative teams are being pushed to stretch further — less time, less money, more content. AI is the tool in our toolkit right now to do more for less, and faster.

But to use it well, you need a producer’s brain. It’s about knowing what can be executed successfully in AI to elevate a project — and what should absolutely stay out of the Gen AI pipeline. For example, we might be producing straightforward ecomm PDP assets on white for a brand, but while that’s happening, I’m already thinking: How can we reimagine these for something more expressive? Maybe it’s a motion piece for Valentine’s Day or a playful background switch for social micro-content.

That’s where AI becomes the superhero — it opens up possibilities that were previously out of scope, letting us spin out variations, test ideas, and bring to life creative extensions that would have been too time- or budget-prohibitive before.

MF: The daily tasks and asks are growing and outpacing the budgets. AI doesn’t solve everything on its own — it needs the human touch and instinct to guide it.

For brands considering AI integration, what’s your advice on where to start and what to prioritize?

AO: That’s the conversation I’m having with almost every brand, every day.

Getting started really depends on the industry. In beauty, for example, we’ve seen a lot of success using AI to create ingredient imagery. There’s massive value here because there’s always that one obscure ingredient that’s out of season, hard to source, or wildly expensive to shoot. With AI, we can say: Not only can we generate that ingredient, but we can give you 40 variations with different compositions, lighting, and styles. Then we refine the strongest ones using traditional methods to bring them to life — all for less than what a single traditional ingredient shoot would have cost.

The key is approaching AI with a different mindset than traditional production. It’s not a linear process. You need a big creative appetite and open, collaborative energy — especially in the early ideation phase. It often works best when you flip the usual flow, start expansive, experiment quickly, and then shape and polish from there. It’s a different rhythm, but it opens up a lot more possibilities.

I tell brands to look for areas where their time and energy could be better spent — and stay open to using Gen AI to fill the gaps.
 We love when clients bring us ideas and ask, “Could this work with AI?” That curiosity is where the magic starts. Stay open, experiment often, and watch how the creative landscape evolves for your brand.

MF: Experiment, discover, and try. You never know where it will go.

Mark Fina has worked with some of the most recognized names in fashion and beauty, cutting his teeth at Grey and playing a part in some of the most iconic brand moments of the past few decades.

Looking at Industrial Color’s creative capacity through a fresh lens, Mark shares his vision for merging industry, culture, art, and commerce in a meaningful way and leveraging AI to dream big.

Tell me a little about your background and who or what has had a major influence on how you work?

Mark: My work has always been informed by my exposure to art and culture. In my youth, I studied the masters, their drawings and paintings to understand color theory, style, and techniques.

Drawing inspiration from diverse sources; from modernists to the Renaissance, to the introduction of photography, and even Egyptian line drawings. I find the diverse vastness builds depth and inspiration to every project I approach.

A pivotal memory of mine was reading an Interview magazine article about Francesco Clemente. What struck me was not just his art alone, but that he painted in Armani suits. This sparked my fascination with merging commercial art and creativity, leading me to explore how art, fashion and commerce can coexist.

As I began to approach campaigns, I tried to find the juxtapositions to evoke emotion and change within the beauty industry. For example; flipping the industry on its head by looking at beauty in all forms, hiring people like Queen Latifah for CoverGirl opened the way we could see beauty in the commercial landscape.

Some of the moments provoked thought through conceptual ideas and some provoked visually bringing fine art cues into the photographs and stories I wanted to build.

Why did you decide to join Industrial Color?

I was drawn to Industrial Color because of its potential for innovation and Steve’s vision. Steve is a Business Dreamer who gets excited about uncovering and exploring new possibilities.

The company’s history speaks for itself. Taking that legacy of innovation and merging concepts like industry, culture, art, and commerce is an incredible place to be. That is something that is only possible with people who think big. 

I’m looking forward to creating work that resonates and breaks ground with the incredible shifts that are happening in the industry today.

Tell me about the Creative team you’re building here, starting with its mission

The core mission is about merging industry, culture, art, and commerce in a meaningful way. It’s about understanding consumers deeply through research, recognizing that creativity isn’t just about aesthetics, but about connecting with people’s real needs and experiences. It’s a language.

Our approach starts with the space to have creative freedom, comprehensive research, and a solid understanding of demographics and psychographics. This allows us to get a sense of how people live, feel, and make decisions. This is the language that creates an opportunity to have a direct dialogue with our clients and consumers. It’s about going beyond surface-level trends to understand the deeper cultural and emotional drivers that influence consumer behavior.

What is your starting point when working with a client?

My starting point is always research and asking two fundamental questions: “Why should I care? Why would I share?” This means diving deep into understanding the target audience, their motivations, and the cultural context.

I believe in starting with facts combined with instinct. By grounding creative work in thorough research, we can create more meaningful and resonant work. It’s about listening, learning, and then finding innovative ways to connect with people.

How do you view the role of a creative today, particularly as technology continues to evolve and expand what’s possible?

The role of a creative today is to be adaptable, curious, and open to change. Technology, especially AI, isn’t just a tool – it’s a way of expanding creative possibilities. I teach at the School of Visual Arts and often tell my students, if you limit yourself to traditional methods, you’re cutting out entire dimensions of potential creativity.

AI represents an extraordinary opportunity to dream bigger, to create without the previous technical limitations. It’s about asking “What if?” and being willing to explore new routes to creativity.

What content formats or creative approaches do you think represent where the market is heading? And where do you see AI fitting in with creativity?

The market is moving towards more authentic, experience-driven content. People are seeking real experiences, whether it’s pop-up events, concerts, or content that breaks traditional patterns. Brands like Hermès are leading the way by being unexpectedly creative and breaking their own category norms.

AI should be seen as more than just a cost-cutting or efficiency tool. It’s a method of activation and a new way of creating. The key is maintaining the human factor – using AI to generate hypotheses and explore ideas, but always bringing human emotional intelligence and critical thinking to interpret and refine those ideas.

What excites you most about creating right now?

The most exciting creators are those who can break patterns, challenge expectations, and find new ways of seeing and expressing the world. Right now we’re at a fascinating intersection of technology, culture, and creativity.

What excites me most is the potential for boundless creativity. With tools like AI, the ability to say “I can dream it, I can make it” has never been more real. It’s about letting go of fear, embracing change, and constantly asking “What if?”

Katie: Hi Aldana! Thanks for taking the time to chat. First, I’m curious about the crazy bone and rock collection on your shelf.

Aldana: Good eye! I found most of the bones and rocks from hiking and exploring with my two German shepherds, Gerdi and Gita. The bone collection specifically is because I make sculptures out of them, which originates from my fascination with how things work – everything from skeletal systems to processes. I try to reverse engineer things all the time, figure out how they’re made or how people and businesses operate. My brain always needs something to look into and figure out. That paired with needing a creative outlet has led to me making these tiny bone sculptures. One of my favorite creations is a delicate skeletal creature I crafted using fish bones I collected at the Salton Sea. It’s a whimsical piece that resembles a tiny winged dragon seahorse, and it’s part of a series. Definitely need a creative outlet working in production operations!

I’m so glad I asked! Now, can you tell us how you entered this industry?

Photography was always a hobby of mine and I tend to be level 100 whenever I am into something, so I built a darkroom in my laundry room and began pumping out prints on top of the washing machine. At the time I was in Boca Raton, FL and decided to take a trip to NYC with my friend. That trip completely exploded my brain (in a good way) and inspired me to radically change my life and apply to art school. I’m sure you can imagine how excited my latino parents were to find out that I secretly applied to Parsons School of Design, got in, and that I was moving to New York City by myself to pursue a career in photography!

Was Parsons the right choice for you?

Absolutely. Parsons sharpened my eye for design and toughened my skin with those dreaded critique review sessions! I realized right away that I was much better at the business of photography vs being behind the camera, so I shifted my focus to finding my place in the industry. I landed an internship at Women’s Wear Daily and from that moment I was hooked on production and the “behind the scenes world” of making shoots happen. My second internship was at Drive In Studios and I became even more obsessed. I was there for nine years and it allowed me to set some deep roots, learn a ton, and connect with super talented people. I worked my way up to become the bookings manager where I really dug my heels into the industry and learned the ropes from great mentors like Tony Moschini and Kip McQueen who are now part of my team here at Industrial Color.

How did you transition to Industrial Color?

At Drive In, I had worked on a massive project for Microsoft, creating thousands of exercise videos for a new app sponsored by Bing. It re-sparked my passion for production and after a few months in the freelance world, I joined Industrial Color as an Account Director in their video department. It was right when photographers were transitioning to directing and I helped them make the leap into digital video. Looking back, it was such a pivotal moment in our industry.

And then?

Steve, the founder, asked me to be a part of rebuilding and ressurecting Smashbox Studios in LA. It was a massive undertaking, managing a huge construction project and relaunching their studio operation from the ground up. Talk about being level 100 – I packed up my life and moved west! In the end, I think we created something special and brought back the spirit of Smashbox Studios. What made this experience even more incredible was the team I worked with. It was the collaboration with great people that really took us to the next level and made Smashbox the amazing place that it is today (shoutout to the best team in LA)! From there we built Industrial Color Studios in DTLA to do ecomm, and the entire thing began to grow. It’s amazing how ecomm has evolved over the years – it’s not only capturing PDP assets anymore; it’s become about elevating those assets and leveraging the shoots to capture additional content that can be used on different channels and social platforms. It was also important for us to figure out how to use tech to control our workflow. We worked with Globaledit to build Globaledit Studio which has become an absolute game changer for ecomm production.

After that experience in LA, what’s your plan now that you’re back in NYC?

I definitely miss LA, but it’s great to be back at the IC headquarters. We added so many services over the years that it was time to consolidate. My main mission is to run all production as one so it’s a seamless experience for everyone and really streamline the operation. A big part of what drives me is solving people’s problems and becoming “a giver of solutions”, and to do it at a level that blows away a clients expectations. Building partnerships and getting to collaborate with great brands is what gives me my mojo every day. Another key mission is using new tech to be way more effective. IC has historically been a creative tech leader so I’m excited to be able to drive the new wave (no pressure!). Of course that means embracing AI and embarking on the journey of learning about its ability to fuel and enhance our creative processes.

Off of that, to exceed expectations? You work with a lot of different brands, some of the top, most recognizable brands in the world. How do you recognize excellence when you see it?

You know, excellence is all about going above and beyond expectations, be it the ones we set for ourselves or those set by our clients, and delivering at the highest level possible. It’s about giving your all and creating something that not only feels different but also incredibly special and masterful. You also have to think about concepts like quality and taste because that’s also a part of excellence. It’s hard because everyone has a different taste level, right? I developed an eye for design, and just good work in general, partly from being a human that ingests content all day long, but also from evaluating the work we create. Whenever we are reviewing work, I’m always asking, how will people receive this? Did we nail the ask or are we not hitting the mark yet? Having a high level of empathy is key here. Being really in tune with who the audience is and how they’re going to perceive it. Determining if something’s going to be well received by not only the client but also their target audience. We put everything through that filter.

You mentioned mentoring, I really connect with how important that is. What’s your approach?

I couldn’t agree more about the importance of mentoring. I started my journey as an intern, and it was the guidance and support of a few exceptional people that shaped my career trajectory. As a result, I believe it’s so important to give back to the future leaders of our industry. Mentoring, in my view, extends beyond teaching technical skills. It’s about inspiring individuals, providing them with the tools they need to reach their full potential, and creating an environment where they can thrive. It’s a two-way street; by helping others grow and achieve their next level, we build good karma and foster a culture of support and growth.

Thank you, Aldana! Is there anything else you want to share before we wrap?

I’m excited about the future of our industry, the potential of new technologies, and the opportunity to collaborate with exceptional brands. It’s an exciting time, and I’m grateful for the chance to be part of a field that’s constantly evolving. Thanks for the chat!