[Creative Circle 2016] Cream of the creative crop 2

Lang, Deeb, Schlumpf and Rangaka

My online panel comprised: Graham Lang: CCO at Y&R South Africa and Africa (their work on Land Rover Surround Camera System 'See Every Thing' came tops in outdoor); Jonathan Deeb, ECD at FCB Joburg (their work on Lexus LS’s Pre-collision System 'The Billboard that Knows What You’re Thinking' came third in the outdoor category); Martin Schlumpf, creative director at Joe Public (their work on Dialdirect’s 'The Notebook' came third in film following first place at ad of the month last year, it just missed last year’s cut off so it had to contend with a whole new year’s worth of new work); and Tseliso Rangaka, ECD at Ogilvy & Mather Cape Town (their work on Volkswagen’s Touareg 'Moments' came second in print, Amarok 'The 1 Ton Coupon' was second in outdoor and up! 'The Test Ride' topped experiential while Ogilvy Joburg’s Lucozade 'Give Me Strength - Night Before The Project came second in radio).

1. How exactly does the Creative Circle’s Ad of the Year rankings work?

Lang: As the others have said, finalists were selected based on awarded work from 2015, and judged against other winners in each category. In the end, the work that finished at the top of the rankings were those pieces that yet again scored the highest in a tighter race.

Deeb: The Ad of the Year process is extremely tough with only a first, second and third position awarded per category from the entire body of work produced in the country each year. Each judge is able to select only one piece as their chosen winner from the Creative Circle Monthly Award Winners. In comparison to the Loeries, where due to the points system it is possible for many pieces of work to be awarded gold, it is therefore a true accolade to be selected as one of the Ad of The Year winners.

2. What’s your favourite creative work in these categories at the moment?

Lang: We were very honoured and proud to win in OOH, as it has become a very wide category. Everything from traditional billboards to stunts and activations that constitutes a piece of communication, can be entered into Outdoor. It’s also a category that is seeing some fantastic tech and innovation. Unlike the decline of Print & Radio, Outdoor has become a very relevant medium that is constantly reinventing itself. My favourite work from the last year was the Apple iPhone 6 Wold Gallery campaign.

Deeb: Outdoor advertising is sadly generally extremely dull, with brands opting to populate our roadsides with bland messages that lack engagement. The piece that I most admire in this space was done in South America for Samsung Trucks. A genius idea that via the installation of screens on the back of their delivery trucks, allows drivers to see the view of the road ahead of them in order to be able to overtake safely. There increasing pressure for brands to provide communication that beyond information and engagement, enriches the consumers life – we are going to see much more in the way of “goodvertising” in the future.

Schlumpf: The Volkswagen “Moments” commercial is definitely up there, a well-deserved winner with great insight that hits the emotional spot. And the Santam commercial is truly South African so definitely one of my favourites, too.

Rangaka: There’s a lot of interesting work coming out of 2015 and early 2016 in the various awards shows at the moment. The following got my attention: For Experiential, Netflix “Finals Guinea Pig” is a fun campaign that lived on the Periscope social platform to help students decide whether to watch Netflix or study for their final exams. For Print, I’m also really enjoying the Snickers “You are not you when you’re hungry” print campaign. The ads feature Snickers bars that have turned into other popular snack bar brands. It’s clever and quite cheeky, too. In radio, at the risk of sounding like a “me too,” I am going to name Lucozade “Do it with energy” as my favourite radio campaign at the moment. The spots have done the circuit for some time but they still make me smile whenever I hear them. Isn’t that what great radio is about? The when it comes to film, this category is full of choice for me, so I’ll mention three: First is Apple’s “History of Music” spot. It’s a beautifully produced ode to one of my dearest life companions. It’s hard to love music and dislike this ad. Second is the madness that is the Old Spice “Smell Legendary” campaign. What more can I say? Sport England’s “This Girl Can” spot is my third choice then. I love the music, the realness and the message. I’m not mad about the titles though; it really doesn’t need them.

3. Do you agree that coming out with a good hand at our local Creative Circle bodes well for these same entries at the international award shows?

Lang: If an idea is good, relevant and relates to a simple human truth, then is should have a chance at any show. But there is a massive jump in the standard of the work and the filter of the judges when you get to the top international juries. Good work should be rewarded, but some of the best work that comes out of SA is very locally relevant, and therefore someone on a jury has to stand up and explain a campaign, as it often gets lost in translation. My advice is to not worry too much about what juries think of your work. Do the best for the target you’re selling to and the client that’s paying for the work and if it happens to win an award, then pat yourself and others on the back – then quickly move on to the next one.

Deeb: The same judges that sit on the Creative Circle Ad of the Year panel are often invited to judge at Cannes and other international awards shows. South African advertising standards are of a very high level. So if work is eligible for the following entry cycle of the international shows and has already featured well at Ad of the Year, it stands a very good chance. Our Coca-Cola “Rainbow Nation” activation that took top place in the experiential category at Ad of the Year went on to win six Cannes Lions, including gold. It is not an absolute certainty, but is certainly a good sign for winning work to go on to feature abroad.

Schlumpf: Agreed, it’s always a good sign as to what will win in the internationals. We have first-class creatives and therefore first-class judges. Human truths and solid insights have a certain universal appeal that everyone will get and love.

Rangaka: The Creative Circle Awards are notoriously tough because the judges have to select work that rose above all other work from the previous year. It’s basically awarding winners from a bank of other winners, so doing well here is generally a good sign for other award shows.

Seems these are the ones to watch, whether they shine again on the international circuit or not. Click here for a gallery of this year’s winning work and here for a reminder of this year’s winners. Click here if you missed responses from other Creative Circle 2015 winners earlier this week!