"We knew this campaign was exceptional and exceeded our client's expectations, but are truly honoured that our peers on the judging panel rated our entry so highly," says Bailey.
"We were ecstatic when we won AdReview's Event of the Year, but to win the Roger Garlick Award as well is beyond our wildest dreams," adds Torrani. The recent AdReview Awards also paid tribute to the dynamic duo by awarding them the Event of the Year for the same campaign.
Four AMASA Golds were awarded this year for recognition of outstanding achievement in media innovation. They were awarded to:
An initiative of the Advertising Media Association of South Africa (AMASA), and sponsored by Oracle Airtime Sales, the Roger Garlick Award rewards and recognises media innovation. Since its inception in 1999, the Award has become the most prestigious in the South African media industry, second only to the international Cannes Media Lions. Cinevation's creativity and originality has secured the trophy in three of the six years (2001, 2002 and now 2006), as well as bringing home the Cannes Media Lions for two consecutive years, and now the industry waits with bated breath to see if they can score a hat trick and hunt down another Lion.
This entry demonstrated a stroke of genius as Cinevation conjured up a magical one of a kind experiential 'book store' for Exclusive Books at Montecasino building up to the launch of the latest Harry Potter novel last year.
The 'Book Store', created by Cinevation at Montecasino in Johannesburg, was a fully interactive, experiential theatre production allowing ardent Potter fanatics to enter the magical world of Harry Potter.
After being sorted by a real sorting hat, a wizardly guide escorted Potter fans along Privet Drive and through Diagon Alley, complete with cauldrons. They attended classes at Hogwarts School, explored the Forbidden Forest and were enchanted by the Chamber of Secrets. The experience came complete with monster books, flying letterboxes, workable wands and exploding potions.
Professional actors, sophisticated lighting and sound invoked the senses bringing a feeling or reality to the experience. In essence, visitors 'walked through the books' - personally living the magic of Harry Potter in an unforgettable one-of-a- kind book launch. JK Rowling's book and the Cinevation experience became uniquely intertwined in a tactile and enchanting journey.
The promotion opened in June 2005 to crowds of Harry Potter enthusiasts and ran for three weeks. In some instances visitors queued for three and four hours, but maximising return on investment for Exclusive Books, those who ordered and prepaid for the book needed only to produce their Magic Receipt for VIP fast access and an invitation to the Midnight Launch Party.
The launch generated exceptional interest through both word-of-mouth and unprecedented media coverage, resulting in approximately 16 000 kids experiencing this unique 'Book Store'.
The campaign generated an estimated R4-million in free publicity across TV, radio and print. Exclusive books dominated the Harry Potter launch in South Africa maintaining its market leadership position.
Besides being a first of its kind in South Africa, it was the largest promotion to launch Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince worldwide. Despite the magnitude of the project, Cinevation pulled out all the stops in implementation.
Entered by Linda Taylor, the team at Universal tapped into every man's fantasy through its online sponsorship of the Sports Illustrated Swimwear (SASI) site, promoting Motorola's V3 RAZR. The sponsorship included:
TBWA Fusion for Listerine in the Best Use of Out of Home category
Entered by Quinton Jones, media director for TBWA Fusion, Listerine's objective was to promote its mouthwash and pocket packs that get to 'hard to reach places'. Through below-the-line activities that included a Listerine-branded map during December's peak holiday period, brand awareness was heightened and supported by above-the-line activities on a limited budget. A pocket pack was attached to the bottom of the map, further reinforcing the message. In addition, a petrol card was offered as a prize for motorists and pedestrians who took part in the promotion, on the way to those 'hard to reach places'. 200 000 samples were trialed and the brand over-achieved on strong sales targets for the month of December.
Submitted by Kevan Aspos, MD of The Jupiter Drawing Room Cape Town, in this entry, entrepreneurial performance artists recreated popular American movies, adding a South African spin to them. The execution involved an actor from the townships who performed a live 'trailer', using a tin can and torch as a projector, transparency as film and his voice for sound effects and voices of the main characters. Through this medium, Nando's was positioned as a credible and relevant South African brand.
