2008 Sappi Thinkahead Awards winners

One hundred and eighty one final year students from 23 tertiary institutions around the country entered their portfolios this year, resulting in six Silvers and 32 Merits for individual pieces.

Cilliers walked away with an Apple Mac, sponsored by Think, Adobe software, a ticket to Design Indaba, a Woolworth's gift hamper, an SL Magazine subscription and new design books courtesy of Affinity Publishing and The Loerie Awards. Cilliers was also awarded a one-month internship at SL Magazine.

The Sappi Thinkahead Awards also acknowledges the contribution of the institutions and lecturers who help nurture future design talent. This year, Stellenbosch Academy of Design and Photography, Vega the Brand Communications School Johannesburg, the University of Stellenbosch, and North-West University were all in the running for the Top Institution prize, which is based on the total number of awards won by a school.

Top institution

However it was the University of Pretoria which walked away with the title of Top Institution for 2008. The Best Point of Sale Display award, a new prize this year which was created to coincide with the retail theme, was won by AAA School of Advertising in Cape Town.

“The Sappi Thinkahead Awards are a fantastic platform for students entering the industry to showcase their work, receive recognition and hopefully be snapped up by the industry,” believes Kassie Naidoo, current Think board member and Chairperson of this year's Thinkahead judging committee.

Nelia Blumrick, who was also a judge, agrees, “The competition offers graduates the opportunity to see how their portfolios compare with their peers, and lets them get a real sense of what is expected from them when they leave the comfort zone of university.”

Well-known comedian John Vlismas played host to over four hundred guests, which included students, lecturers, and creative directors from some of the top design agencies in Johannesburg.

Theme

The theme of the evening was a Final Year Clearance Sale, an appropriate choice as the competition is open only to communication design students in their last year of study. The over-exaggerated, tongue-in-cheek ‘Sell Your Soul' theme was reflected in the warehouse atmosphere of Carfax, along with the quirky décor of mannequins, clothing rails, sale banners and even bargain bins.

The retail concept was created by the design team at Blue Moon, which has been the campaign sponsors for the Sappi Thinkahead Awards for the past two years. “It's great for our company to be associated with the Thinkahead Awards,” says Nelia Blumrick, design director of Blue Moon. “The campaign is a designer's dream to work on, as there are no real limitations on concept or execution. As the purpose of the competition is to help graduates get jobs in the industry, we thought ‘Sell Your Soul' was a rather apt theme, seeing as designers often have to sacrifice their creative vision for the client's bottom line.”

However, the concept also had a more positive spin. “We also wanted students to literally sell us their porties, by letting the strength of their work shine through. It's good practice for when they have to sell their portfolios to prospective employers and their ideas to future clients.”

Sponsors

This year's prize sponsors included Woolworths, Adobe, Design Indaba, SL Magazine, Affinity Publishing, Biblioteq and The Loerie Awards. Printing for all the campaign elements was sponsored by Hot Dot Print and House of Print.

The awards were held on Wednesday night, 26 November 2008.