Katie Mullen
Writer & Creative Director
Storytelling | Dialogue | Cause | Product
Katie Mullen is a writer and creative director known for work that brings our shared humanity into focus. Her honest, empathetic voice spans the full range of emotions — from joy to sorrow — and connects with audiences at a heart-level.
As a former ad worker, she’s told stories for brands like SC Johnson, Planned Parenthood, The Nation Magazine, Kohl’s and the Milwaukee Bucks, layering deep intentionality into everything she does in order to set the stage for memorable creative that lands authentically.
Katie co-founded BlackPaint Studios, a barrier breaking creative agency that specialized in cause-related awareness campaigns and raised the bar for creative work coming out of the region between 2015-2022. As the agency’s principal, she became an outspoken champion for equity and inclusion in the industry and earned a national reputation as a powerful advocate for reform as well as opportunities to spread her message from platforms like the TED stage, Creative Mornings and Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference.
In addition to her commercial work, Katie is an award-winning visual artist and creative writer who uses art as a catalyst to open people’s eyes and create change in her community. Her work has received recognition or awards from the Milwaukee Film Festival, NPR, Senator Tammy Baldwin, Planned Parenthood and more.