173 Pencils were handed out to young talent during the D&AD New Blood Festival in London this weekend. 3 Black, 4 White, 29 Yellow, 42 Graphite and 95 Wood Pencil winners were chosen from more than a thousand entries submitted from 48 countries. The top winners by country were the UK, the US & Spain.
Take on the Future was the overarching theme for 2019’s New Blood Awards, with individual brands and agencies adding their own flourish on this. The winning entries ranged from humorous and playful campaigns to sharp, satirical commentaries on topics from climate change and period poverty to fake news.
Black Pencil winners:
- West Herts College students, Jack Parker & Savannah Finestone, for Make Waves With Waves in response to the adidas brief, aimed at empowering black girls to swim by providing free swimming lessons and a range of swim caps and hair-care products tailored for black hair types. Make Waves with Waves was also awarded a White Pencil, a special award judged across winning entries from all New Blood Awards briefs, for work that shows social purpose and has the power to promote positive change.
https://youtu.be/efX01niCZY8
- Danish School of Media and Journalism students, Joachim Klintfält, Mark Terkelsbøl & Nicolas Housted for Pad Paper in response to the McKinsey Design & The Case For Her brief, for their innovative sanitary pad roll designed to remove the stigma around menstruation by making period products as commonplace as loo roll.
https://youtu.be/AIaCadXE5jc
- Middlesex University students, Kenneth Meek & Marianne Johansen, for Narration in response to the BBC brief, providing a comprehensive database of the BBC’s audio-described TV shows so they can be better accessed by those who need them, namely the blind and partially sighted, as well as a multitasking generation that wants to enjoy shows without being tied to the TV screen.
https://youtu.be/oWYgS_BscVQ
Entries spanned digital design, illustration and graphics to intricately crafted animation, across a variety of media from print products and billboards to online, TV and social media channels.
Tim Lindsay, chief executive officer of D&AD commented, “This year’s D&AD New Blood Awards have showcased an outstanding amount of creative talent from students and graduates from across the world. The standard was so high that three Black Pencil winners were chosen, all of which brought fresh and dynamic thinking to create powerful creative solutions for a fairer society. 2019’s body of work heralds an exciting future for our industry – congratulations to all the winners.”
Entry to the awards is open to anyone in full or part-time education, recent graduates who finished their course within the past two years and anyone 23 or under. Those who have won a Pencil have gone on to work in some of the biggest names in the industry, such as AKQA, BBC, Apple and Wieden + Kennedy.
Paul Drake, foundation director, D&AD, commented, “D&AD is globally renowned for championing creative excellence. We have a deep-seated belief that education is fundamental to excellence, and the exceptional ideas within this year’s New Blood Awards testify to the power of creative education. As an education not-for-profit, D&AD New Blood Awards are just one of the many D&AD initiatives dedicated to nurturing and upskilling new creative talent, so we hope aspiring creatives across the world can both be inspired by the winning work and feel empowered to enter into the industry in the knowledge that there are resources and tools out there for them.”
All 2019 Pencil winners are eligible to apply for the New Blood Academy 2019 with WPP, where 25 graduates can attend a free four-week creative bootcamp to learn from the best in the business. Attendees work alongside WPP agencies on a live brief in order to secure a foot-in-the-door with a series of paid placements up for grabs. The unique experience is designed to provide the skills and insights that can be difficult to acquire at university but are fundamental for our industry.
D&AD also provides various online educational tools, including the Make and Break podcast in partnership with WPP featuring valuable insights and lessons from the New Blood Academy. In last year’s six-part series, New Blood alumni talked to leaders from design, advertising and media, discussing the top issues people need to know when starting out in the industry. The next series of the podcast will be unveiled later this year.
D&AD New Blood Festival is a graduate showcase that brings emerging creatives and the industry together over three days of talks, fringe events and an exhibition from UK universities’ top talent. It is currently taking place at The Old Truman Brewery, London from 11 – 13 July, aspiring creatives and professionals looking to meet and recruit new creative talent can register for a free pass via the D&AD website.
White Pencil Winners
- Durex – School of Porn
Winners: Per Berge Moe, Sollin Sæle
College: Westerdals Oslo School of Arts Communication and Technology
https://youtu.be/-dFB0CWNhCw
- Side Hustle – Personal Patient Pack (PPP)
Winners: Hannah Grogan, Máire Kane
College: National College of Art and Design
- Adnams – SAVE THE BEErS
Winners: Mathias Gudberg Juel, Oliver Strzelbicki
College: DMJX – Danish School of Media and Journalism
- Nationwide and Shelter – Make Waves With Waves
Winner: Jack Parker, Savannah Finestone
College: West Herts College
A Selection of Yellow Pencil Winners
- Burger King – The Picky WHOPPER
Winner: Adam Ramsdale
College: FCB New Zealand
- Durex – Yes Starts with Durex
Winners: Chiara Gericke, David Fanner
College: Falmouth University
- Microsoft Surface – Vivaldi’s Four Seasons Recomposed by Max
Winners: Işık Ege Ülgenalp, Sibel Shakir, Zeos James Green
College: London College of Communication
https://youtu.be/xiSOaVdO-OI
- giffgaff – 24 Months
Winner: Charlotte Cunningham
College: Leeds Arts University
- Rexona – Rexona #MoveAgainstAnxiety
Winner: Bernice Puleng Mosala
College: Vega School of Brand Leadership Johannesburg
The full list of winners by category is available on the D&AD website here.
A selection of images and creative assets of winning work is available here.
Best Stand Winners
- Falmouth University (MA, Communication Design)
- University of Gloucestershire (BA, Advertising) – runner up
- Falmouth University (BA, Illustration) – runner up
New Blood Awards 2019 partners: adidas, Adnams, Adobe & LADbible, Bacardí, BBC, Burger King, Coutts, Durex,giffgaff, Heinz, John Lewis & Partners, McKinsey Design & The Case for Her, Microsoft Surface, Monotype, Rexona, The Times & The Sunday Times, Virgin Atlantic & Workplace by Facebook
