I’m a chief creative officer, advertising copywriter, teacher, problem solver, role playing strategist, client translator, and unapologetic AI prompt aficionado. Somewhere between all of that, my friends and family still wonder how I manage to be a gamer, a comic book writer, and a racehorse breeder too.

My Story

I’ve spent over twenty years learning this business from the inside at places like DDB, Y&R, JWT, FCB, McCann, Arnold, and Grey. Each stop taught me something different about people, brands, and the hard work behind ideas that actually matter.

I’ve worked across five markets from three cities I still carry with me: San Juan, Miami, and Washington, DC. Somewhere along the way, the work picked up awards from Cannes Lions, Clio, London International Awards, The Webbys, and a long list of others that mostly remind you how many smart people you were lucky to work with.

It’s also nice to see the work live beyond the campaign, showing up in places like Advertising Age, Communication Arts, Lürzer’s Archive, Shots, Contagious, and Graphis. That part never gets old.

Six years ago, I went back to where it all started. I returned to Arteaga & Arteaga, the agency where I once interned, with a simple goal: to rethink how we approached creativity. Since then, my team and I have been building ideas designed to move businesses forward for brands like Bristol Myers Squibb, Pfizer, Sanofi, JCPenney, Pep Boys, Mobil, Reckitt, Little Caesars, and Puerto Rico Coca-Cola Bottlers. What makes it work is not the awards. It’s a culture built on curiosity, collaboration, and the belief that creativity is still our most powerful tool.

Over the years, I’ve been lucky enough to work with some great brands. The work that follows is simply proof of what I believe creativity should be.

  1. “Storytelling can be used as a catalyst for action.”

  • Storytelling works because it makes people care before it asks them to act. When Primera Hora wanted to address the dangers of texting while driving, they didn’t want another lecture or another chart. They wanted something people would feel.

    So we used Pepito, a character readers had grown up with and trusted. In the story, Pepito is hit by a distracted driver while fighting for tougher distracted driving laws. He falls into a coma, and suddenly this was no longer an abstract issue. It was personal. Readers followed his condition day by day, knowing that his recovery depended on real legislative action.

    By choosing empathy over statistics, the story kept people engaged and pushed them to do something that mattered. The result was real policy change, including higher fines for texting while driving.

2. “Gamification is a tool to change behavior.”

  • The best ideas often come from looking at something familiar and asking a better question. In this case, it was a dance challenge. What if it could do more than entertain?

    The For Your Pain Dance Challenge took a popular social media trend and turned it into a rehabilitation tool for people living with rheumatoid arthritis. Millions of Americans deal with this condition every day, along with the emotional weight that comes from being misunderstood. Rehabilitation usually treats the joints but forgets the person.

    Launched on World Arthritis Day, the challenge invited patients to perform simple, carefully designed dance movements that encouraged joint mobility while making recovery feel lighter and more human. It didn’t feel like therapy. It felt like participation.

    What followed was something bigger than a medical program. It became a shared moment that connected people, lifted spirits, and challenged stereotypes. Because dance has always been more than movement. It’s a way people heal together.

3. “Empowering communities makes a brand stronger.”

  • Two years after Hurricane Maria, Puerto Rico was still carrying the damage. Buildings were broken, but so was the sense that help would arrive in time or in full. Construrama saw an opportunity to do something different.

    Instead of donating money and moving on, they decided to show what rebuilding actually looks like. They took their DIY video platform out of the studio and into Salinas, a coastal town hit hard by the storm. The videos were filmed while rebuilding the only school in a low income community, with real people doing real work.

    Construrama supplied the materials and the expertise, but the community did the rebuilding and became the face of the campaign. These were not polished tutorials. They were living examples of resilience, pride, and self reliance.

    The work helped reignite a national conversation about what happens when communities are trusted with the tools to rebuild themselves. The message was simple and powerful. When disaster hits, real recovery starts with people, not donations.

4. “Surprise sparks curiosity and affinity.”

  • Surprise works because it makes people stop. And stopping is usually where thinking begins. Amnistía Internacional understood that when they created Fotosentimientos.com.

    At first, the site felt harmless. It let people design Valentine’s Day cards, something light and familiar. Then the experience changed. Midway through, users were faced with a hard truth: one in three women is abused by a man.

    The campaign spoke directly to young adults who live online and care deeply about social issues. By placing a serious message inside a moment meant for romance and celebration, the contrast made it impossible to ignore. It turned Valentine’s Day into something more than a ritual. It became a reminder that some truths demand attention, even when the timing feels uncomfortable.

5. “Content > Ads”

  • People don’t want to be advertised to anymore. They want something that feels honest. Mountain Dew got that.

    Instead of talking about antioxidants, vitamins, or carbonation, the brand chose to talk about people. The Kickstart POV series followed artists, gamers, and athletes through their daily lives, giving fans a front row seat into worlds they already cared about. It felt less like a campaign and more like an invitation.

    The budget was small, under two thousand dollars, but the impact wasn’t. Nearly a million views, thousands of likes, and widespread sharing proved that relevance beats production value every time. By putting authentic stories at the center, Mountain Dew didn’t just promote a product. It earned attention the hard way, by respecting the audience.

6. “I rather aim for Top of Heart than Top of Mind.”

  • In 2015, Puerto Rico was going through a rough stretch. The economy was collapsing, the credit rating had fallen to junk, and uncertainty was everywhere. The movies became one of the few places where people could forget about all that, even if just for a couple of hours.

    Coca-Cola didn’t try to fix the economy. They did something smaller and smarter. Outside movie theaters, they set up a machine that gave you a soda if you smiled. That smile was filmed and then shown on the big screen inside, turning a quiet moment into a shared one.

    It worked because it wasn’t logical. It was emotional. People don’t choose brands because they make sense. They choose them because they make them feel something. In hard times, that feeling matters even more. Coca-Cola understood that joy, even in its simplest form, can be more powerful than any message trying to explain why a brand is right.

My CV

These days, I’m focused on building what’s next as VP of Innovation and Chief Creative Officer at Arteaga & Arteaga, named Puerto Rico’s top independent agency by the TOP FICE Global Ranking. Over the past twenty years, I’ve written just about everything you can write in advertising, from quick social lines to long form pieces that stretch into the thousands of words, in English and in Spanish.

I care deeply about the work. That care has taken me to places like the presidency of the AAF Caribbean Chapter and the role of country representative for Cannes Lions. It’s also given me the chance to judge creative competitions around the world, which is a great way to stay curious and slightly humbled at the same time.

Teaching is another part of the job I wouldn’t trade. As a professor at Escuela Superior de Creativos Publicitarios, I get to help new talent understand not just how digital creativity works, but why it matters.

Somewhere in between all of that, I write Pepito, a comic strip about Puerto Rican politics that UNESCO has recognized for its cultural impact. I’ve also published a book of short romantic stories called Sin Preludio. You can buy it on Amazon. Also, if you want the long version of my path, it’s all on LinkedIn.

The journey is not only about the destination, but the friends we make along the way.

Nice people saying nice things.

  • Big smile. Big Heart. Big ideas. That's what comes immediately to mind when I think of Anibal. The digital world is his playground but he's also comfortable in the traditional world. Anibal's a passionate writer who makes advertising fun and rewarding.

    Woody Kay,
    Executive Creative Director
    Arnold

  • Passion, fun, hard work. That's what you get when you hire people like Anibal. I love to have people in my team that speaks out his/her opinion without hesitation, specially when they're well versed in the subject, Anibal is an excellent copywriter with special talents in social media. So if you are going to reject one of Anibal's ideas on how to promote a brand on Pinterest, you better have the hard data to prove him wrong. Otherwise, just take it, I can assure you is the right thing to do. I hope I can have him again in my team. Someday.

    Carlos Tornell, VP Creative Director at Casanova//McCann

  • Anibal's passion for creating great work is only matched by his talent. I can honestly say I haven't worked with another creative who is as viscerally motivated in this respect. Trust him with an assignment and he will take that responsibility very seriously. For Anibal, it's about the concept. The big idea. If you're looking for tossed-off headlines or copy look elsewhere, because a project isn't just a project for Anibal, it's a problem to be ingeniously solved. His book pretty much demonstrates that fact. What his portfolio can't show you, however, is his buoyant personality. His presence warmed up our creative department, and it's something we still miss. Perhaps you'll be the next beneficiary. Meet Anibal yourself and you'll find a man heavily invested in everything he does, whether it's as a creative, father or friend.m

    Mick Sutter,
    Executive Creative DirectorSimpsonScarborough

  • Anibal is a rare creative. He is about big ideas. And he doesn't wait around for creative briefs or assignments. He takes matter into his own hands. As a result, he comes up with things that make the client relationship stronger and the work better. He is just as talented in the digital realm as the traditional. The way his mind is wired, he can come up with an interactive idea that isn't just amazing, it's something that's never been done. Anibal has incredible team spirit. Whether it's creating an initiative to make the agency famous or bringing in mini key lime pies, he really cares about the agency as much as the work.

    Elizabeth Phillips, Senior Director, Creative Services at AARP Services

  • Anibal is a sharp, sharp thinker. In two languages. And he knows how to use both, especially when trying to sell his ideas. And his ideas frankly... rock. The great thing about this Puertorrican powerhouse is that he knows how to come up with awesome concepts without straying from strategy. And he's not shy. He'll fight the fight if the ideas deserve it. He understands the brand and his ideas always align with the brand's values. Este tipo es un bravo y el que trabaje con el se dara cuenta right away. You see? Two languages. Anibal can do that too. Probably faster and better. I'm happy de poder trabajar with him.

    Marcos Moure,
    Group Creative Director
    VMLY&R

  • Anibal is a true creative mind at work. He constantly questions and looks for ways to solve key communication obstacles. He is team oriented and a treat to work with.

    Manuel Muchacho, Business owner and Marketing Consultant

  • Anibal is an exceptional person and I am privileged to have worked with him. In his work, a professional and a great human being. Super creative, every idea he presented us, we loved. I wish him success in every step of his life.


    Norma Ruiz,
    Digital Marketing Manager
    Triple-S

  • Working with Aníbal is a true delight. He is a doer, who is constantly looking for new and better ideas. I must say that working with him was one of the reasons I wanted to get out of bed and go to work every day. Only a few people have inspired me during my career and Aníbal is certainly one of them. He is a great advertising man, but also a very nice human being to work with. I wish him the best of luck in all of his endeavors.

    Saraí Meléndez-Rodríguez,
    Creative Director

  • Don't know where to start. Anibal is certainly something else, one of the few, the type of creative you hope to work with one day and the kind of friend you always want to have around. For me Anibal is a true Creative Leader - forget his undeniable talent as a writer (not just ad copy but any type of writing) or his ability to deliver an impeccable body of work every time. For me what really makes Anibal stick out from the rest of the creative crowd is his natural ability to lead and inspire a team to perform to their best (even for the most dreadful task) Also his capacity to be an idea making machine, is truly remarkable. I'm certain Anibal will become a leader within the Creative community very soon... and I can't wait to see it.

    Nicole Vilalte,
    Chief Marketing Officer at Invest Puerto Rico

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