Anastasia Simone
Senior Art Director at Droga5
Anastasia is a Hong Kong-grown Senior Art Director at Droga5 Melbourne. She’s a Cannes See It Be It alum, served on the D&AD jury in 2022 and 2023, and currently sits on the ACA Futures Board.
In her spare time (lmao), she’s a first-time indie video game dev, and illustrates covers for books by emerging Black and brown authors.
Career & Background
What inspired you to do what you are doing now?
My mom taught me that any problem can be solved with creativity. When I found out that creative problem-solver could be a real career that let me explore a great, big range of artistic disciplines while working with other artists and dreamers, I knew I had to do that.
Could you tell us a bit about your professional background?
I’ve worked at Geometry Global, McCann (Cathay Pacific team), Leo Burnett, Havas Host, and now Droga5. I’ve had the pleasure of judging award shows like D&AD and AWARD Awards, as well as the incoming AWARD School entries. I’ve mentored with D&AD Shift and AWARD School.
Your favourite food for thought
Books
- Persepolis (Marjane Satrapi)
- There Are Rivers in the Sky (Elif Shafak)
- Helium (Rudy Francisco)
Podcasts / Thought Leaders
- The Imposterous (Podcast)
What drives and inspires you
What are your core values?
- Compassion
- Risk-taking
- Vulnerability
Who is your biggest inspiration and why?
Current obsessions are Kendrick Lamar and Doechii. They’re both culture-leading visionaries with consistently fresh visual taste—everything I see amazes me—and they’re both uncompromisingly human in how they express and explore their creativity.
You as a Mentor
Why have you decided to become a mentor?
Coming up, I didn’t see anyone like myself in leadership positions. Although I’m still learning and growing, I know that my visibility makes a difference to young creatives who feel like they can’t belong in this industry. And we really, really need them to stay.
What are the top 3-5 skills or qualities you bring to mentoring?
- Compassionate
- Sees potential in others
- Present and focused
- Resilient
- Willing to be vulnerable
Ready to apply?
The best time is right now. Take a chance – you never know where an Assisterhood mentor can take you.