72andSunny and Riff Raff Films are the first-ever recipients of two special honours in the final release of this year’s Cresta Awards.
Riff Raff Films is Cresta’s first Production Company of The Year, with its collection of trophies including a Grand Prix for Burberry’s Festive.
72andSunny Los Angeles has won the new Entry Of The Year Award, which applauds the highest-scoring single entry. The highest scorer was Fantastic Voyage for Adobe, most notably for the quality of special effects (the production company was Partizan and the VFX were by Mathematic).
“By partnering with 72andSunny, we were able to unleash and celebrate the power of imagination and bring this world to life in an incredible and creatively inspiring way,” stated AJ Joseph, chief creative director of Adobe.
BBDO is Network Of The Year, for the third year in a row. This achievement came from wins by a range of offices, led by BBDO Germany and BBDO New York, with support from BBDO Singapore, Guerrero BBDO of The Philippines and IMPACT BBDO Beirut.
BBDO chairman and chief creative officer, David Lubars, commented, ““Creative excellence year in and year out is our highest priority, we never ‘take time off’. So it’s an honour to be named Network of the Year at Cresta for the third time in a row.”
Serviceplan Munich is also a triple winner – for Independent Network of the Year. And it has won Agency of the Year Award for the second time in a row.
RT Creative Lab of Moscow, with its #VictoryPages: Social Media History, was chosen by Merlee Jayme, Jury Chair, to receive her personal Jury Award. This is a personal gift to an entry that had a particular resonance for her.
Jayme commented, “When I first saw this idea, I was awed by the love and passion of the creatives in achieving the objective of keeping World War II alive and interesting and relevant to the younger generation.”
In a remarkable decision, Cresta has given its President’s Award to a whole region, the Middle East. Alan Page, president of Cresta, explained, “This honour is both recognises great achievement and also highlights the direction things are moving in our creative world. This year built on last year in making quite clear that the Middle East has emerged as a powerhouse of creativity. There are all sorts of reasons, issues and opportunities to unravel in that. We’re delighted to shine a little extra spotlight on this remarkable trend.”
Khaled AlShehhi, executive director of new media and visual production sector for the UAE, and a client behind some of the biggest winners at Cresta 2021, commented, “Social media has given a voice and a platform to a new generation of creators. They’re assertive and push boundaries to transform our cultural backdrop. Clients are also more ambitious, pushing their agencies and responding more positively to their proposals. The result is in better work being entered in more global, as well as regional, awards. Rubbing shoulders with their global peers is an inspiration to do better.
“This award is a vibrant recognition of the collective work produced so far by public and private organizations, clients and agencies, large and small, and a whole ecosystem of contractors, suppliers and specialist outfits. It’s also an encouragement to keep going and try harder.”
