MANILA, PHILIPPINES – Two creatives from the Philippines have won the prestigious AdAge Young Creatives Cover Competition for 2020. Copywriter Alexandra Lopez of MullenLowe Philippines and art director Miguel Bade of J. Romero and Associates bested the entries sent from all around the world.
While past winners of this contest were flown to join the annual lawn party at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, things will be markedly different in light of the global pandemic. Cannes Lions had previously announced the cancelation of their 2020 Festival, joining countless other events that have been wiped out because of the COVID-19 situation. Instead, Alexandra and Miguel will be featured during the virtual The Future of Creativity event this week.
The brief spoke about the industry’s talents still demonstrating innovation and ingenuity in the face of the pandemic as they continue to create marketing and safety messages while also expressing their own creativity in their personal projects. The challenge then was to create a cover that celebrates how creativity continues to shine and empower in what feels like one of the world’s darkest moments. That same cover should clearly address the industry’s struggle and innovation throughout the crisis.
In an adobo magazine exclusive, Alexandra Lopez answered a few questions on their win:
Tell us about your tandem with Miguel Bade of J Romero who is from another agency. Who is the writer and art director between the two of you?
“We became partners back in 2017 for two years, I was Miguel’s copywriter and he was my art director. We instantly became best friends because of our work chemistry but eventually went our separate ways to explore other opportunities.”
How did you approach the brief and develop the idea for the AdAge cover?
“We came from a space of being restricted and we struggled ideating, but that’s when we realized that the motivation to create is actually the goal to do good work and it’s always been our inspiration because despite the struggle, we kept on coming up with a new idea. That’s where “We Are the Light” came from.”
Please describe the creative process during lockdown, the cover idea, and the final execution.
“We went back and forth on Google docs ideating on how we want to show that we are the light in these dark times. We decided to go for a more conceptual image where a man working on his desk is portrayed as the lamp – symbolizing that we as creatives persevere every day because we have the power to bring light to certain situations and solutions.”
What is your reaction to the win and the opportunity to go to Cannes next year? (!!)
“We honestly thought it was a prank until we read the whole email! Although AdAge did not specify if we would be going to Cannes next year, we’re excited at the thought of joining next year’s festivities.”
All participants were directed to be clever and avoid clichés such as images of masks or hand sanitizer, as well as overused phrases. If they do choose to go down that path, then they were asked to make sure they did so in a fresh way.
This is the Philippines’ fourth win in the AdAge Young Creatives Cover Competition. Just last year, Arnel Villanueva of BBDO Guerrero was the winner. In 2017, Carlos Quimpo and Byron Co, junior art directors from TBWA\Santiago Mangada Puno (TBWA\SMP) were declared victors. Before them, Katrina Encanto and EJ Galang of MullenLowe Philippines’ predecessor, Lowe and Partners, won the competition in 2013.
