Seen and noted

BEST TV
Winner: 2degrees 'Dinghy'. It's bloody hard to sell invisible things. We've worked for all the major networks in the US and hit our fair share of conceptual walls. Hats off to the team on this one for striking that razor thin balance of demonstrating a serious network test while also keeping it super light, super simple and super memorable. Hope Susan made it home and hope there's more in the series.

Runner-up: Alpha Support at Home 'Say no to the nursing home'. I feel like our parents might film this ad on TV and drop it in our family WhatsApp group with the laugh emoji, smile emoji and, inexplicably, the robot emoji. Nice and brave and fun for the category.

BEST PRINT
Winner: Australian Avocados 'Hey Chip Industry'. What a layout. It's hard to make anyone read long copy but the lovely minimalist art direction sucked us in. Not sure why avos are telling chips what to do but the ad leaves us wanting both so we're here for it. And that line 'chipwrecked'...Tostitos should steal it immediately.

Runner-up: Jack Stillman 'This Is The Worst I'll Ever Look'. Just a great headline. I'm a backpack geek and the insight that new bags suck is real. All I want is that lovely patina that says to a passerby that I'm a fearless adventurer living off the land with nothing but a leather satchel and hand whittled smoking pipe. In truth I stroll 10 minutes to our studio every day and my backpack carries a laptop and a pitiful gluten free breakfast bar.

BEST OUTDOOR
Winner: #BinItAtTheRightPlace 'The Meteor'. Make an insignificant action feel catastrophic. Nice and simple. Mission accomplished.

Runner-up: Thomas Cook 'Deflatables'. It's hard to ignore very sad dolphins. Didn't know floaties were a big contributor to the plastic problem but if I saw this waiting for my bag at the carousel I'd think twice about leaving one in the sea.

BEST RADIO
Winner: True North 'Life's Different After'. Who doesn't like a radio that doesn't scream at you? Simple thought for bottling a little of that serene holiday vibe.

Runner-up: Virgin Media 'Break free from the commute Quiz'. Gotta love that Brian Cox baritone. Fun spot that would make a boring commute a little less so.




This week's guest judges are Alex Little and Karsten Jurkschat, founders of the creative studio Tall Poppy - a New York-based global creative company that develops a select number of brand projects each year that blur lines between advertising, culture and utility.

Alex and Karsten established themselves in Australia as leaders who bring high impact, non-traditional thinking to brands. They moved to the United States and were named U.S. Creative Directors of the Year by AdAge and propelled McCann NY to Cannes Lions #2 Global Agency of the Year with their work for Verizon and March For Our Lives. Their work is constantly written about and reported on because it transcends marketing and becomes essential cultural conversation.

Prior to founding Tall Poppy, Alex and Karsten designed and developed the AT&T Connected Helmet at Translation - a life changing device for Deaf and Hearing Impaired football players that integrates a heads-up display into a player's helmet for visual communication with coaches. The helmet was approved by the NCAA (National Collegiate Athletics Association) and is worn by players today.

They also created the viral gun reform campaign Generation Lockdown which was viewed 55+ million times in two weeks and shared by everyone from Kamala Harris to the Kardashians. It also played live on the U.S. Senate Floor and won the Cannes Grand Prix for Good for McCann.

Tall Poppy's approach is called Creative Sustainability® — replacing fast, disposable advertising with work that endures.