The Creative Circle Awards results for February 2007 are out and according to chairperson Julian Watt, it was a poor month by volume and quality, with none of the judges seeing clear winners in any of the categories. “Perhaps it’s just a thin month prior to Cannes submissions, the quiet before the storm,” he says hopefully.
Continues Watt, “The 1 + 1 = 3 formula of incongruity and cleverness reigns. Yahoo adland. There seemed to be a number of ideas that were just better art directed versions of ads and formulae we’ve already seen (and judged), and Poster still relies heavily on print ads blown up.
“Outdoor seems the freshest category since creatives are actually being creative when applying their minds to ambient and activation. Well done here.”
System prototype
Watt goes on to explain that the judges agreed to prototype a slightly different system this month: “The work would be judged as normal, but before the actual scores and winners were announced, we’d open the floor for debate. The agreement was that the debate could not alter the original scores the judges had given.
“The result was interesting, fascinating and disturbing (in that order).
“While the general standard of the work was average, the work that got most debate didn’t actually win. And the winning work didn’t initiate much debate at all. Which creates debate regarding the science of averages and its effect on isolating winners. There’s certainly some work to be done here and I’ll be asking the exco to consider a more decisive system,” concludes Watt.
Newspaper
1. SABC/Good Hope FM “Bulb” – BBDO CT
2. RBK/Sanpic “Toilet/Basin/Bathroom” – JWT (Jhb)3. M-Net/No Ad Breaks “Cowboy/Alien/Psycho/Kung Fu” – Ogilvy
Magazine
1. 3M/Super-Sticky Post-It “Bike” – Grey Worldwide
2. 3M/Super-Sticky Post-It “Diver” – Grey Worldwide3. Multichoice/ESPN – Seating Areas “Basketball/Baseball/Boxing” – Ogilvy
Outdoor
1. Sasol/Soccer Sponsorship “Attire/No Rules/Game Duration” – TBWA\Hunt\Lascaris
2. Exclusive Books/The Love of Cooking Book-Rude Food “Mushroom/Melons/Mussel” – Ogilvy
3. Virgin Atlantic/Upper Class Suite/MPH Motorshow “Lamborghini Key” – Net#Work BBDO
3. AAA School of Advertising/Copywriting/Art Direction/Design Courses “X/Expand/Elephant/Curve” – The Jupiter Drawing Room (South Africa)
TV/Cinema
1. Unilever/Sunlight Washing Powder “Salesman” – Lowe Bull (Jhb)
2. Capitec Bank “Matchbox” – BBDO CT3. Sanofi-Aventis/Maalox “Crab” – Publicis (Jhb)
Radio
1. SABC/Cricket World Cup “Pun” – Net#Work BBDO
2. Exclusive Books/The Joy of Cooking “Rude Food” - Ogilvy3. Sports Illustrated/Greatest Images 2006 “Maria Sharapobva” – Saatchi & Saatchi
The judging panel for February 2007 comprised:
- Julian Watt,
- Net#Work BBDO
- Bruce Anderson, Grey Worldwide
- Sanele Ngubane, Ogilvy
- Matthew Barns, Tequila
- Eoin Welsh, KingJames
- Darren Borrino, Lowe Bull
- Catherine Thompson, FCB
- Terry McKenna, Leo Burnett
- Neil Ross, JWT
Watt’s parting words of wisdom: “Until [next time], keep the dream alive, have fun and consider whether your next great ad should even be an ad?”
