The Monkeys: From congealed blood to the world stage

As one of Australia’s most successful agencies, The Monkeys rebrands as Droga5, founder and chief executive Mark Green shares the agency’s origin story and pays tribute to its 18-year legacy.

Droga5 global CEO Mark Green in New York.

The Monkeys, I love you. But all good things come to an end and it is with great pride I write about our epic 18-year journey. So let’s start at the beginning. Scott, Justin and I all met at Saatchi & Saatchi in 2004. After our second meeting, I walked into their office and asked them if they had ever thought about starting their own agency. They pulled out poorly assembled business cards reading Catapult Communications. A seed was sown. As their work earned increasing acclaim in Australia, the initial spark actually seemed like an idea worth pursuing.

We had this idea of creating a business that blurred the lines between advertising, entertainment and technology. We actually envisioned the name Three Drunk Monkeys appearing as the last title on a television series or feature film. So we decided to throw in $10,000 each and start a business. Most of that money was spent on lawyers defending our position when Saatchi & Saatchi tried to sue us after Foxtel decided to send briefs our way. We will always be thankful to Brian Walsh, Ant Warne and Kim Williams for giving us our first break.

We were off to a flying start. Andrew Denton commissioned a television show, 30 Seconds. Clients started rolling in and we found our first premises in up and coming inner-city Sydney’s Redfern. When we took possession of the keys in the foyer of our new Great Buckingham Street office, a pool of congealed blood lay on the floor. Noticing our obvious concern, the real estate agent pushed us into the worst lift imaginable and up to our studio. It was here that the business flourished. Michael Richie from Revolver remarked that what he loved about Three Drunk Monkeys in those early days was that it was literally “all about the work”. And it was, and it still is. We loved what we did, what we do, and it is why I have never stopped.

Droga5 global CEO Mark Green with the agency founder David Droga.

Over those 18 years, we worked with the best and brightest in the industry. We made ads, television shows, books … we even started our very own ice-cream company. We worked with so many brilliant clients and to this day we remain thankful for the trust and faith shown in “a bunch of bloody dreamers”. We felt like we did deliver for every one of our clients and our work was recognised in every major award show on the planet. But what gave us most pleasure was the fame that was created for many of Australia’s top brands. What a privilege it has been to work with the likes of Telstra, Qantas, Meat & Livestock Australia, NRMA, Australia Post and many others.

People often ask what are my favourite ads over the 18 years and there are a few that stand out. Our very first summer campaign for Meat & Livestock Australia featuring Richie Benaud. Both our Sydney Opera House films, one with Tim Minchin and the other featuring Nick Cave’s Ship Song come to mind. And of course it was a privilege to produce an epic centenary “I still call Australia home” film for Qantas. Telstra for so many years was our cornerstone client and our very last campaign, “This is footy country”, was much loved, as has been our work for NRMA Insurance. So many great memories.

It is also with great pride that we can say that our business was a success from beginning to end. We always managed to stay on top and compete with so many brilliant agencies and in our final two years as The Monkeys we managed to bring home two Grands Prix at Cannes, a Titanium Lion for the work we did for Tuvalu in creating the world’s first digital nation, and a Film Grand Prix for Sydney Opera House. This year’s Cannes Lions festival ended with the work for Sydney Opera House and a message to the industry to never play it safe. We never did, and we never will.

Which brings us to the next stage in this epic adventure – the uniting of The Monkeys and Droga5. I have now been in New York for two months and feel energised by the opportunity to build one of the best global agency brands. Droga5 has always had creative ambition at its heart and David Droga remains committed to staying on top. The team at The Monkeys can feel part of a bigger global team that has creativity in its DNA and will continue to reinvent what advertising can be. And as part of Accenture Song, we can take creativity further than ever before.

So while on the one hand we can look back with a tinge of sadness at the end of The Monkeys, on the other we can already see that the best work of our careers is ahead of us. From those humble beginnings in Redfern and a foyer with congealed blood on the floor, I write this ode to The Monkeys from Wall Street in New York. And as I look outside my office window, it looks like Donald Trump has just landed in a helicopter. What in the world will happen next? I guess there are many tales still to be written. The Monkeys, I love you.

Mark Green is the global CEO of Droga5. He was a founder and CEO of The Monkeys.