The Billboard, Print and Poster media will continue to be the most challenging one to judge. Because it will always be the most controversial. Print, Poster and Billboard probably are the oldest forms of advertising. Most of the advertising legends we know today built their legacy on print advertising. To stand out in these media you need to overtake and beat everything else that’s been done before on a specific brand or specific category. That is why you hear a lot of “I have seen it before, it reminds me of, it is the same idea, and the likes” in the jury room.
Luckily at the LIA, I was among an outstanding Jury panel led by a great President - Matt Eastwood. It is very important that the President does not dominate the conversations, force an opinion and at the same time he helps the jury feel comfortable to express their opinions and most importantly, challenge each other to reward the best work that deserves to be acknowledged with an LIA statue. Matt was just that and more. It was very fluid and positive and no one felt any pressure at any point.
But all this doesn’t come out of the blue. The LIA team themselves were almost invisible. They would not interrupt or interfere in any step of the process nor add any pressure of any sort on the Jury President or the Jury panel. All this helps the process and leads to higher chances of the best work getting noticed and rewarded rather than getting lost in translation. In that room you feel the rest of the world has disappeared, it is weird – a good weird. Everyone is 100% focused on the work and on each other. Every word, every vote counts. Nothing can slip. (And I know most people like I once did, think otherwise, because it is in Vegas but that’s not the case.)
Although a great portion of the work might have been seen or awarded in other shows, nevertheless, in that room we all felt like we are seeing it for the first time. Every conversation we had was about the work itself and evaluating it based solely on its own merit without any influence if it has won in other shows before or not. In fact this was never even put on the table.
It was all smooth, focused and positive and of course, fun.
A hearty congratulations to all those who made it; it is well earned. And there is always next year and the year after for those who were left disappointed. Try harder, you are almost there, never give up.
So if I were to sum it all up, LIA doesn’t only reflect the world’s best work but it also embodies an immaculate judging processes that make it possible.
The Billboard, Print and Poster media will continue to be the most challenging one to judge. Because it will always be the most controversial. Print, Poster and Billboard probably are the oldest forms of advertising. Most of the advertising legends we know today built their legacy on print advertising. To stand out in these media you need to overtake and beat everything else that’s been done before on a specific brand or specific category. That is why you hear a lot of “I have seen it before, it reminds me of, it is the same idea, and the likes” in the jury room.
Luckily at the LIA, I was among an outstanding Jury panel led by a great President - Matt Eastwood. It is very important that the President does not dominate the conversations, force an opinion and at the same time he helps the jury feel comfortable to express their opinions and most importantly, challenge each other to reward the best work that deserves to be acknowledged with an LIA statue. Matt was just that and more. It was very fluid and positive and no one felt any pressure at any point.
But all this doesn’t come out of the blue. The LIA team themselves were almost invisible. They would not interrupt or interfere in any step of the process nor add any pressure of any sort on the Jury President or the Jury panel. All this helps the process and leads to higher chances of the best work getting noticed and rewarded rather than getting lost in translation. In that room you feel the rest of the world has disappeared, it is weird – a good weird. Everyone is 100% focused on the work and on each other. Every word, every vote counts. Nothing can slip. (And I know most people like I once did, think otherwise, because it is in Vegas but that’s not the case.)
Although a great portion of the work might have been seen or awarded in other shows, nevertheless, in that room we all felt like we are seeing it for the first time. Every conversation we had was about the work itself and evaluating it based solely on its own merit without any influence if it has won in other shows before or not. In fact this was never even put on the table.
It was all smooth, focused and positive and of course, fun.
A hearty congratulations to all those who made it; it is well earned. And there is always next year and the year after for those who were left disappointed. Try harder, you are almost there, never give up.
So if I were to sum it all up, LIA doesn’t only reflect the world’s best work but it also embodies an immaculate judging processes that make it possible.