MANILA, MARCH 22, 2013 – “This is not a fashion show. We are not looking for the sexiest or the prettiest idea,” declared ADFEST 2013 Grand Jury President Graham Fink at the festival’s Jury press conference. Indeed, the buzzwords for ADFEST 2013 seemed to be effectiveness and cultural awareness, attributes which were reflected in spades by this year’s winners.
Held from March 17-19 at the beach resort city of Pattaya, Thailand, ADFEST 2013 played host to industry leaders, practitioners and students from around the Asia Pacific region.
The first day opened strong, with Donald Gunn Emma Wilkie walking a rapt audience through the latest edition of The Gunn Report’s findings, illustrating a directly proportionate relationship between the number of awards a given work wins and its actual effectiveness.
Subsequent sessions of substance included Lowe Philippines ECD Leigh Reyes on the impact actually making things can have on one’s creativity and work output and D&AD’s CEO Tim Lindsay speaking on his White Pencil’s need to look past the confines of traditional CSR, making examples of the Philippines’ TBWA\SMP ‘s ‘Project EDSA’ for Boysen KNOxOUT and Ace Saatchi and Saatchi’s ‘Tiger Energy Playground’ for Tiger Energy Biscuits.
On Day 3, a Jury Shootout was held, moderated by BBDO Guerrero’s David Guerrero, wherein Jury Presidents Dave King (Direct), Santosh Padhi (Design) Naoki Ito (Outdoor), Valerie Cheng (Interactive) and Ronald Ng (Film) took to the stage to share their thoughts on the festival’s finalists, and their thought processes and rationale in selecting winners.
Graham Fink gave a talk that same afternoon on “Crossing Cultures” where he wryly showcased assorted TVC’s that may not have been necessarily award-winning, but had nevertheless caught his fancy, such as a TVC from Thailand for staples featuring an overly-passionate endorser (who also happened to be the owner of the company that manufactured the staples) and a spot for Norton’s Guardian Amulet series of secure flashdrives from Japan, which boasted everything from lotus blossoms to ninjas.
The meat of the second and third days were the accompanying awards nights, which saw more than their share of surprises, not the least of which were Ogilvy China’s much-awarded “Coke Hands” failing to score a Gold Lotus, much less a Grande, despite its Grand Prix win at Cannes last year.
On the interactive front, DDB DM9JamesSyfu scored a Gold for its ‘Bury the Past’ campaign to combat the proliferation of sexually explicit “scandal” videos, as did the wildly popular “Dumb Ways to Die” by McCann Melbourne for Metro Train took home a Grande Film Lotus for its ability to deliver an important message through unabashed cuteness and a catchy tune.
Clemenger BBDO Melbourne and BBDO Guerrero both took home Gold Lotuses for Film, for ‘Beer Chase’ (for client Carlton Draught) and ‘Stamp/Pound/Wash’ TVC series (for Saridon), respectively. Cheil Worldwide’s ever-popular ‘iNsight’ TVC for Samsung Camera and Taproot India for ‘I Am Mumbai’ Mumbai Mirror likewise won Gold Lotuses for Film, with the latter also bagging the Grande Lotus Roots award for its cultural relevance.
The big winner for the night was Leo Burnett, which was named Network of the Year, bolstered in no small measure by its Melbourne office winning Direct & Promo Agency of the Year, while Leo Burnett Sydney took home the Print Grand Prix for the beautifully crafted Bundaberg Red "Catfish, Pig, Butterfly" campaign and their work on Diageo having the brand proclaimed Advertiser of the Year.
Of the wins, Jarek Ziebinski, President, Leo Burnett Asia Pacific., said, “Being recognized by ADFEST as the most creative network in Asia Pacific is a wonderful recognition that is made possible by the collective hard work of each and every Burnetter across the region, I couldn’t be more proud. As one of the fastest growing networks in Asia Pacific, we believe that creativity has a direct correlation with business success. Winning Network of the Year at ADFEST this year and being crowned Creative Network of the Year in Asia Pacific by The Gunn Report last year are testaments to this belief.”
ADFEST 2013 finished off with an afterparty held at the Royal Cliff Hotel’s infinity pool, as delegates ate, drank and made merry into the wee hours or, at the very least, as long as the open bar lived up to its name.
Here’s looking forward to ADFEST 2014!
Visit adobomagazine.com/adfest2013 for a complete list of winners, as well as exclusive coverage, photos and video interviews, direct from the event, as covered by adobo editor-in-chief Angel Guerrero and managing editor Mikhail Lecaros, with reportage by Danielle Austria, Denise Galoyo, Emarrah Sarreal, and Ricardo Malit.
