PATTAYA, THAILAND — The final day at ADFEST 2024 culminated on March 23, with the second of two presentations of Lotus Awards to the elected winners in eight categories: Effective, Outdoor, Sustainable, Press, Radio & Audio, Film, INNOVA Lotus, and Lotus Roots.
The Grande for Humanity and Special Awards were also announced to a packed hall.
The awards were presented at PEACH, Royal Cliff Hotels Group in Pattaya, Thailand.
A total of 1,587 entries were received for the Lotus Awards, and 63 jury members from 23 cities were organized into seven groups, chaired by Malcolm Poynton, Global Chief Creative Officer for Cheil Worldwide from London, to decide the winners of the ADFEST 2024 Lotus Awards.
Malcolm said, “In briefing the jury for ADFEST this year, I asked them to judge with open hearts to celebrate world-class ideas that come from and are true to the incredible local cultures of Asia and the Pacific. To be confident in voting for the creativity of Asia, leaving behind any ‘global’ view, any agency versus agency, country versus country views often seen at other shows.”
“Overall, the juries’ impressions were of truly world-class work rooted in local culture, along with a welcome shift toward more emotional work, the return of wit, humor, and more personality in the work.
“I’m happy to say Human Intelligence is evident in all winning work. From Design and INNOVA to Digital, Mobile, Film, Film Craft, Effective, Lotus Roots, and Lotus Grande, we see it takes creative minds to have the human insight and imagination to take the leaps resulting in creative ideas that move people.”
JURY INSIGHTS: OUTDOOR LOTUS / PRESS LOTUS / RADIO & AUDIO LOTUS / FILM LOTUS
David Guerrero, Creative Chair for BBDO Guerrero, was Jury President for Film, Outdoor, Press, and Radio & Audio. He commented, “I was excited to review and compare these categories to the last time I headed a jury at ADFEST almost 20 years ago. Back then, these four categories comprised the entire festival. Now, they represent ‘classic’ creativity. It’s good to see what has changed and what has not. Film is, in some ways, the least changed of the four.”
“If anything, the importance of good film-making, even in a classic 30 or 60 length, has only increased. Radio & Audio Lotus was not the strongest category before but has been revitalized to some extent by the ‘use of audio’ component.”
“Outdoor is still interesting. There is a bias now towards activation and interactivity with social media. So classic billboards are less seen in the show.”
“Finally, Press still seems to be searching for a role. It’s no longer seen as a ‘mass’ medium. It does, however, still have a vital role as a way to influence opinion. And there is still respect for the power of the printed word.”
OUTDOOR LOTUS AWARD
76 pieces of work were entered in the Outdoor Lotus category, and the Jury awarded three Bronze, two Silver, one Gold, and one Grande.
Gigil won the Gold award for Netflix “4Dish Pot.”
Leo Burnett Korea was elected the Grande winner for its work on McDonald’s “Mom’s Bed.”
David explained, “The interesting thing here is the brand was willing to take a stand about a health policy matter. Many brands shy away from expressing a point of view on things like this, and we all liked how the execution linked seamlessly to social media and led to an action to address the problem.”
PRESS LOTUS AWARD
There were 17 entries recorded for the Press Lotus awards, and the jury gave out one Grande.
The Grande was won by Impact BBDO for An Nahar Newspaper “The Newspapers Inside. The Newspaper Edition.”
“The role of the press in political debate is highlighted in this piece where banned newspapers were reprinted within one complete daily. It showed defiance and strength in the face of censorship. It also shows that it needs to be confronted in an actionable way,” said David
RADIO & AUDIO LOTUS AWARD
This year, 33 entries were received for the Radio & Audio Lotus Awards. Two Silver winners and two Gold winners were also announced.
Two Gold awards were presented to:
- Leo Burnett Taiwan for Taiwan Organ Sharing Registry & Patient Autonomy Promotion Center “Hear My Last Wish”
- Dentsu for McDonald’s “Fries Beat”
FILM LOTUS AWARD
One of the larger categories at ADFEST 2024 was Film Lotus, with 176 entries. The jury awarded seven Bronze, four Silver, one Gold, and one Grande.
The Gold was presented to Wolf BKK for Robinson Department Store “The Air Drummer.”
CHOOJAI AND FRIENDS won the Grande for work on Sammakorn titled “Sammakorn Not Sanpakorn.”
David explained, “This film stood out for embracing a very authentic problem with the brand name. The performance of the lead character illuminated the script. The direction brought it all together as a confident comedic masterwork. This was a unanimous verdict by the jury for the best film in the competition.”
JURY INSIGHTS: EFFECTIVE LOTUS / SUSTAINABLE LOTUS
Malcolm was Jury President for Effective and Sustainable.
EFFECTIVE LOTUS AWARD
39 pieces of work were entered in the Effective Lotus category, and the Jury awarded three Bronze, four Silver, one Gold, and one Grande.
The Gold Award was given to Wolf BKK for CP Chicken “Go for Launch.”
Mondelez International Foods was elected winner of the Grande for work on Oreo titled, “#Bringback2011.”
“The jury applauded the truly local insight of this campaign coming from a global brand, tapping into local superstitions to successfully take a bite out of the highly competitive local biscuit market. The tone was pitch-perfect; it appeared serious in execution while being playful as an idea. This resulted in successfully embedding the Oreo brand in local culture. The re-launch aspect was a brilliant twist that enabled this global brand to take a bite out of an extremely competitive local market,” said Malcolm.
SUSTAINABLE LOTUS
This year, ADFEST is introducing a new Lotus category to its Lotus Awards lineup. Creativity, know-how, technological development, and resources are invaluable to achieving social, environmental, and economic sustainability. Sustainable Lotus recognizes the importance of Sustainable Development Goals and how striving for these Global Goals can drive transformational change and positively impact the world and its people.
Sustainable Lotus recorded 55 entries in its inaugural year. The jury awarded four Bronze, four Silver, and one Gold.
FINCH won the Gold for work on Correct the Internet titled “Correct the Internet.”
JURY INSIGHTS: INNOVA LOTUS / LOTUS ROOTS
Malcolm was Grand Jury President for INNOVA Lotus and Lotus Roots. The jury comprised of all the Jury Presidents at ADFEST, including:
- Bill Yom, Founder & Chief Creative Officer, Jung von Matt HANGANG, Seoul – Jury President of Brand Experience Lotus, Commerce Lotus, and Direct Lotus:
- Ashwini Deshpande, Co-founder & Director, Elephant Design, Pune – Jury President of Design Lotus and Print & Outdoor Craft Lotus
- Rei Inamoto, Founding Partner of I&CO, APAC – Jury President of Digital & Social Lotus, Digital Craft Lotus and Mobile Lotus:
- Wendy Chan, Executive Creative Director, Health APAC, Edelman, Hong Kong – Jury President of Entertainment Lotus, Media Lotus, and PR Lotus
- Emma Daines, CEO, Founder & Executive Producer, Fin Design & Effects, Sydney – Jury President of Film Craft Lotus and New Director Lotus
- David Guerrero, Creative Chairman, BBDO Guerrero, Manila 0 Jury President of Film Lotus, Outdoor Lotus, Press Lotus and Radio & Audio Lotus:
This jury also selected the winning work for Lotus Grande for Humanity.
INNOVA LOTUS AWARD
There were 32 entries for INNOVA Lotus, which recognizes world-class concepts that have dramatically impacted the marketplace.
The jury awarded two Innova Lotus in different sub-categories, which were presented to
- Dentsu for WITH ALS “Project Humanity”
- Leo Burnett Taiwan for Taiwan Organ Sharing Registry & Patient Autonomy Promotion Center “Paper Organs”
The Grande INNOVA Lotus was awarded to TBWA\Hakuhodo for Shellmet “Shellmet.”
Malcolm expressed, “Shellmet is so much more than just a helmet. It extends into a holistic design solution for not just a small Hokkaido fishing village but globally too.”
“Innovation sits at its core. From the biomimicry design of the Helmet, which is 30% more resilient than petrochemical acrylic helmets, to pioneering the production of a new eco-material from Scallop shells, simultaneously eradicating much of the 40,000 tonnes of cadmium-leaching waste shells, this innovative project doesn’t just solve for today; it also inspires for tomorrow.”
LOTUS ROOTS AWARD
The Grand Jury President and group of Jury Presidents also presided over the Lotus Roots award, which recognizes creative work that preserves and celebrates each local culture’s rich heritage and value.
The Lotus Roots Grande went to DENTSU for Japan Railway 150th Anniversary Campaign “My Japan Railway.”
“My Japan Railway’s exquisitely crafted 900 station stamp adventure truly celebrates local culture and traditions. One cannot help but be drawn into the playful game of discovering more and more stations. Drawn in by the rich graphic nature of the station iconography, you find yourself scanning the ‘map’ before deep-dive into details, triggering a sense of excitement to ‘see for yourself’ the stations and towns behind the stamps. Combining the most refined of analog design aesthetics with the most rewarding of digital experiences (even the process of collecting the digital stamp sees the ‘ink’ imprint respond to the pressure you apply to the screen), it speaks to all generations, to local and foreign visitors in a way that makes JR’s 150-year history relatable and truly appreciated by all passengers,” concluded Malcolm.
Lotus Roots awards were presented to:
- Dentsu for The Commemorative 105th National High Baseball Championship / Nettoh Koshien 2023 “The Sacred Dirt”
- Leo Burnett Taiwan for Taiwan Organ Sharing Registry and Patient Autonomy Promotion Center “Paper Organs”
