ADFEST has held the first of two presentations of Lotus Awards to announce the winners in 13 categories, including Brand Experience, Commerce, Digital & Social, Direct, Digital Craft, Media, Mobile, PR, Print & Outdoor Craft, Entertainment, Design Lotus, New Director (Inc. Fabulous Five) and Film Craft Lotus. The awards were presented at PEACH, Royal Cliff Hotels Group in Pattaya, Thailand. The second ceremony will take place tomorrow night on the final day of ADFEST 2024.
Dentsu Tokyo’s “My Japan Railway” campaign has been awarded 3 Grande and 4 Gold awards across multiple categories.
Choojai and Friends Bangkok, Six Tokyo, VML Indonesia, Impact BBDO Dubai and Honda Office Tokyo have also picked up Grande awards.
A total of 1,587 entries were received for the Lotus Awards and 63 jury members from 23 cities were organized into 7 groups, chaired by Malcolm Poynton, Global Chief Creative Officer for Cheil Worldwide, London to decide the winners of the ADFEST 2024 Lotus Awards.
JURY INSIGHTS: DIGITAL & SOCIAL LOTUS / DIGITAL CRAFT LOTUS / MOBILE LOTUS
Jury President for Digital & Social, Digital Craft and Mobile Lotus was Rei Inamoto, Founding Partner for I&CO, APAC. He said: “I came into the jury room hoping that I would discover a new kind of work and inspiration. After having spent a few weeks online with the jury and then in person in Pattaya, I’m glad to say that we’ve uncovered some amazing gems.”
“Is the work raising the standard of creativity in Asia and beyond?” That was one key criterion I had going in and during the judging session. I wanted the work awarded at ADFEST to be something that those of us in Asia to be proud of presenting to the rest of the world.
As Vinit said at the beginning of the judging session, the creative standard used to be a little poor in Asia when he started the show. Is Asia leading the industry worldwide? Maybe not. I’d like ADFEST to change that and be a place for Asian creativity to be an inspiration to be the rest of the world.”
DIGITAL & SOCIAL LOTUS AWARD
For the Digital and Social Lotus category, 122 pieces of work were entered, marking a notable 13% increase compared to the previous year. Out of those, juries awarded 4 Bronze and 2 Silver. There was no Gold award given out.
DIGITAL CRAFT LOTUS
The Digital Craft Lotus category received 44 entries this year. The jury awarded 2 Bronze, 3 Silver and 1 Grande.
The Grande was awarded to Dentsu Inc., Tokyo for Japan Railway 150th Anniversary Campaign “My Japan Railway”.
Inamoto says: “My Japan Railway takes a traditional piece of culture, modernized it, and elevates the romance of the brand.”
“It is one of the few pieces of work that can only come from Asia and be an inspiration to the rest of the world.”
MOBILE LOTUS AWARD
Out of 24 entries for Mobile Lotus this year, the juries awarded 2 Bronze, 1 Silver and 1Gold. The Gold award was presented to Dentsu Inc., Tokyo for Japan Railway 150th Anniversary Campaign “My Japan Railway”
JURY INSIGHTS: DESIGN LOTUS / PRINT & OUTDOOR CRAFT LOTUS
Ashwini Deshpande, Co-Founder & Director for Elephant Design Pvt. Ltd., Pune was the Jury President for Design Lotus and Print & Outdoor Craft.
“While judging Design, it is not just important to see the idea and craft of the aesthetic, but very important to see the impact of design and whether it aligns with the intent,” said Deshpande.
“I am always very excited to see audacious ideas that come out genuine intent to solve challenges perceived from authentic insights. ADFEST awards are the platform with rich cultural context from the region. That’s what makes them so important and relevant.
In each of the categories that I judged along with a very accomplished jury panel, we made sure we selected works that drew admiration for everything, the idea, the craft and most importantly, the impact it would leave on the communities.”
DESIGN LOTUS AWARD
109 entries were received for the Design Lotus award and out of these, the jury awarded 5 Bronze, 1 Silver, 2 Gold, and 1 Grande.
One Gold Award was presented to TBWA\Hakuhodo Inc., Tokyo for Shellmet “Shellmet”
Dentsu Inc., Tokyo was elected as winner of a Gold and Grande awards for work on Japan Railway 150th Anniversary Campaign titled, “My Japan Railway”
Deshpande says: “Japan Railway 150th Anniversary Campaign ‘My Japan Railway’ was a mind-blowing piece in so many ways. It is deeply embedded in the Japanese culture where railway is a part of life for over a century. Stations, trains, and journeys have stories of people, architecture, nature and even food culture of Japan. This campaign is a true celebration of all those stories. Each of the 900 (no less!) stations has been given a beautiful, unique, and yet harmonious illustrated identity that represents the true spirit of the station. Travelers can scan and collect those identities as stamps through an app. The campaign embraces multimedia, through maps, books, merchandise and of course an app. Every single illustration is a piece of marvel, and yet when it all comes together as a system, it never loses the warmth of a hand-crafted story.
“I loved the work for its idea, thoughtful curation, beautiful craft, audacious scale and finally the way it reached millions of hearts in a very simple way.”
PRINT & OUTDOOR CRAFT LOTUS AWARD
Print and Outdoor Craft Lotus entries were 39 in total this year. Out of those, 1 Bronze, 1 Silver and 1 Gold awards.
The Gold award was given to Dentsu Inc., Tokyo for Japan Railway 150th Anniversary Campaign “My Japan Railway”.
JURY INSIGHTS: BRAND EXPERIENCE LOTUS/ COMMERCE LOTUS / DIRECT LOTUS
Bill Yom, Founder & Chief Creative Officer for Jung von Matt HANGANG, Seoul resided over the jury for Brand Experience, Commerce and Direct Lotus awards and described his experience.
Yom said: “The diversity of the cultural insights and how the creatives developed outstanding ideas from the scratch to the final details of craftsmanship. But mostly I am happy to see so many countries submit their work.”
“A great idea needs persistency to get really the maximum out of a simple idea. The winner work also approached strong cultural insights into unexpected ideas and execution.”
BRAND EXPERIENCE LOTUS AWARD
There were 137 entries for the Brand Experience Lotus category. The jury for this category also awarded 10 Bronze, 4 Silver, 1 Gold, 1 Grande awards.
VML Thailand, Bangkok won a Gold award for its work on KFC “KFC Bone Tie”.
Dentsu Inc., Tokyo was elected as winner of the Grande award for work on Japan Railway 150th Anniversary Campaign titled, “My Japan Railway”.
“In a stunning display of creativity and dedication, our craftsmanship and innovative ideas breathe new life into a traditional brand, presenting it from a fresh perspective that captivates audiences.” Said Yom.
COMMERCE LOTUS AWARD
For the Commerce Lotus category, 13 pieces of work were entered, with the Jury awarding 2 Silver. No Gold award was given.
DIRECT LOTUS AWARD
Out of 93 entries for Direct Lotus this year, the juries awarded 9 Bronze, 2 Silver, 2 Gold, and 1 Grande.
Two Gold awards were presented to:
Cheil Worldwide, Seoul for Drama ‘Strong Girl Nam-Soon’ “Drug Test Poster”
Dentsu Inc., Tokyo for Japan Railway 150th Anniversary Campaign “My Japan Railway”
The Grande was awarded to VML Indonesia, Jakarta for McDonald’s Indonesia “McDonald’s Wi-Fries”.
Yom said: “In addressing a common challenge for the audience, this project showcases the commitment to meaningful solutions. The creative execution balances simplicity and playfulness, creating a direct and engaging experience for both the audience and the brand.”
JURY INSIGHTS: ENTERTAINMENT LOTUS / MEDIA LOTUS / PR LOTUS
Jury President for Entertainment, Media and PR was Wendy Chan, Health Creative Lead, Asia Pacific for Edelman, Hong Kong. She said: “I find it incredibly inspiring to hear viewpoints and insights from diverse cultures and countries.”
“Unexpected idea that provoke change whether in brand, product or people’s live, inspire and push the boundary of that category.”
ENTERTAINMENT LOTUS AWARD
This year, there were 84 entries in the Entertainment Lotus category with 3 Bronze, 2 Silver, 3 Gold, and 1 Grande awards.
Three Gold Awards were presented to:
Six Inc., Tokyo for Sotetsu “A Train of Memories”
Finch, Sydney for Modibodi “I’m Dying Inside”
BBDO Bangkok Limited, Bangkok for Five Star “My Parent is a Tiktoker”
Choojai and Friends, Bangkok was elected as winner of the Grande award for work on Sammakorn titled, “Sammakorn Not Sanpakorn”
Chan says: “This work took the most boring business category and made it entertaining. By leveraging a problem creatively, it repeatedly calls out the brand name, listed every product and displayed the logo in the most amusing way. It is both entertaining and direct. We watch few times and still laughing. Even I can remember a Thai brand name now!”
MEDIA LOTUS AWARD
The Media Lotus received 92 entries. Out of those, juries awarded 6 Bronze, 3 Silver, and 1 Grande awards.
The Grande was awarded to Impact BBDO, Dubai for An Nahar Newspaper “The Newspapers Inside. The Newspaper Edition”.
“In today’s complex media landscape, this is one of the most traditional media which is declining in every country. Yet, this entry has shown that it is the best medium to unleash the voice of the people. Giving hope and proved that the press will never be silenced,” said Chan.
PR LOTUS AWARD
There were 77 entries for the PR Lotus category. The jury for this category also awarded 7 Bronze, 4 Silver, 4 Gold, and 1 Grande awards.
Three Gold Awards were presented to:
TBWA\Hakuhodo Inc., Tokyo for Shellmet “Shellmet”
Mullenlowe Treyna, Manila for Right to Care “Right to Care”
VML, SINGAPORE for Lux “Change the Angle”
Honda Office, Tokyo was won Gold and Grande awards for work on Ajinomoto “Gyoza” titled, “Frying Pan Challenge”
Chan added: “The works in PR category are strong with many exciting entries. Sometimes the topic of challenge is not necessary to be huge. This work we pick solve a practical challenge. By turning crisis into opportunity through action, result in creating trust in brand and the product. This Grand Prix is a non-sticky decision for us.”
JURY INSIGHTS: FILM CRAFT LOTUS / NEW DIRECTOR LOTUS
Jury President for Film Craft and New Director Lotus was Emma Daines, CEO, Founder & Executive Producer for Fin Design + Effects, Sydney.
Daines said: “What excited us, was the diversity and in adverse conditions of the last 12 months, the excellence on creativity rang through. It was refreshing. We loved the different cultures and the essence and excellence it brought through.. It lead to respectful robust discussions and results i believe we all. as a jury. stand by and rings true to creativity and excellence.”
“Purely through excellence and monitored through keen and honest and informative discussion. It was measured and considered and fairly voted. We were very proud as Jurors!”
FILM CRAFT LOTUS AWARD
Film Craft saw the biggest number of entries with a tally of 232 in total, representing a 7% increase compared to the previous year. The Jury awarded 21 Bronze, 10 Silver, 9 Gold, and 1 Grande awards.
Five Gold awards were presented to:
Arcade Film Factory, Manila for TNT Telco “Mother”
FINCH, Sydney for Modibodi “I’m Dying Inside Campaign”
Ogilvy Group Thailand, Bangkok for Thai Life Insurance “Under My Skin”
Spoon Inc., Tokyo for Pocari Sweat Returnable Bottle Project “Scuffing Song”
VML India, Mumbai for Exide “The Moving Canvas”
Six Inc., Tokyo has won Four Gold and 1 Grande awards for work on Sotetsu titled, “A Train of Memories”
Daines said: “A Train of Memories was a clear winner in many categories which catapulted it to a Grande, not just because of its Production technology achievement but also because of it’s adventurous spirit and undertaking on the approach of the Director and the support around.”
“Support including production/set design, technical choreography, casting, script and original score. Original score was a combination of 2 meaningful cultural origins.”
“It all delivered on screen and was delightful to watch, which we did many many times as it was such a success in many categories.”
“The approach was innovative the result was excellent.”
NEW DIRECTOR LOTUS AWARD (INCL. FABULOUS FIVE)
From 9 entries, there were 2 Gold awards in this category.
Two Gold awards were presented to:
GRAPH STUDIO SDN BHD, Kuala Lumpur for The 2023 Kancil Awards & Festival Of Creativity “Push-Pull”
FINCH, Sydney for Modibodi “I’m Dying Inside”
FABULOUS FIVE
ADFEST’s ‘Fabulous Five’ program is one of the world’s most respected platforms for kick-starting the careers of commercial directors. Five directors with less than two years’ experience were invited to direct 5-minute short films inspired by the theme of ADFEST 2024, “Human Intelligence”.
Congratulations to Ryotaro Nishi, Director from FIELD MANAGEMENT EXPAND Inc., Tokyo who was awarded a Commendation for his short film, “Upside-Down Genius”.
The other finalists are;
Fumiya Hara, Director from FIELD MANAGEMENT EXPAND Inc., Tokyo
Natsuki Urayama, Planner & Director from AOI Pro., Tokyo
Pak Hin Phileas Cheung, Director from WOWWOWTANK Co. Ltd., Hong Kong
Tanjeel Sultan Khan Turja, Director from X-Integrated Marketing Agency, Dhaka
