NZ AWOL at Adfest

BANGKOK, Today: For the second year in a row, NZ agencies and production companies have stayed away in droves from what was once one of the region’s most prestigious creative awards – Adfest.

M+AD’s combed through 20-odd PDFs containing all the results (announced on Friday), and we can confirm that not only are there zero medals for NZ– there were no finalists. Indeed, we found no evidence of any NZ entries. Period.

There were, however, two Kiwis on the judging panels – VMLY&R NZ MD Kim Pick and Good Oil director Michelle Savill.

In contrast, this year (2022) Australia scored a dozen gongs, including Agency of the Year (Saatchi & Saatchi).

For NZ, the 2022 result reflected a similar picture to 2021, where NZ recorded no medals and no finalists.

“My suspicion would be that many NZ agencies are being more selective about how many international awards shows they enter.”

At Adfest 2020, NZ had been very visible, with Colenso BBDO winning the Film Grande Prix (for DB Export I’m Drinking it for You).

More selective?
“Don’t quote me on this,” said one prominent NZ agency manager (who asked not to be identified), “but my suspicion would be that many NZ agencies are being more selective about how many international awards shows they enter and NZ agencies may not have entered Adfest.”

Kim Pick’s observation
Kim Pick told M+AD: “In my judging (Audio, Film, Outdoor and Press Lotus), I don’t recall seeing much New Zealand work entered. There was a great spread of work from Australia as well as Asia and the Middle East.”

• View all the 2022 medallists here
• View the winners showcase here