The world of advertising awards was built around celebrating the idea, not the execution. However, today the way in which ads are made is so advanced and the ideas so reliant upon creating the impossible, it takes many individual skills and expertise to make each campaign a reality.
“When agencies enter LIA, they don’t necessarily enter work into the categories from which production companies, post-production houses, editing facilities and music and sound companies would most benefit, instead choosing product and service categories that aren’t judged at all for the craft or specific technique,” explains Barbara Levy, president of London International Awards.
“What these companies might not even be aware of is that LIA has two completely separate Juries, one for Production, Post-Production and Music Videos and a separate jury for Music and Sound. These juries are made up of the world’s best production and post-production executives, from top executive producers and directors to agency heads of TV, chief production officers and music and sound designers and composers.”
So, why should production and post-production companies bother to enter their own work into LIA?
Laura Gregory, founder of Great Guns and past LIA juror stated, “The quality of LIA’s world-class juries who give their time and passion to this work is staggering. It would be smart to enter so those judges are aware of the work. A craft entry is exactly what it says on the tine – craft, judged by craft.”
“LIA recognises creativity in all forms, celebrating skill and artistry across all disciplines,” adds Neil Davies, ECD at The Mill. “To be acknowledged by peers is an award in itself, but it’s about the teams who work so hard on projects being recognised for their achievements. For us at The Mill, an award is testament to the team's restless pursuit of brilliance, and keeps us pushing to make every job better than the last.”
Levy adds, “So much work goes into making these great ideas a reality, we have a duty to honour the craft. We wish to make sure those involved in the craft are acknowledged. Agencies are not mandated to input creative credits and most only input credits that pertain to the agency.
“If production and post-production companies want to bring home, in the words of Ogilvy Germany’s Stephan Vogel, ‘one of the most spectacular and most prestigious statues you can ever have on your shelf,’ it’s up to them to enter the work they created.”
The LIA 2016 Entry System is still open for new entrants and for additional entries from those who have already entered. Judging will take place in Las Vegas from 6-14 October. The shortlists will be announced as each judging session concludes, with winners being announced 2nd November. For more information, go to www.liaawards.com.
