Fifty thoughts on judging the 50th Clios (Day 5)

Euro RSCG Singapore Executive Creative Director Victor Ng is a judge at this year’s Clio awards, sitting on the Print/Poster/ Billboard/Innovative/Integrated panel. Ng is writing a daily account for Campaign Brief Asia and this is part five of his list of 50 thoughts on the Clio judging experience.

22) You might notice the jump in the number of thoughts I’m sharing today. Hey it’s metal discussions – it’s winnin’ time.

21) Think of a jury as an orchestra, and its jury chairman as the conductor. All the talent and expertise are meaningful only if someone sets the tone and gets every individual to play together. Enter maestro Marcello Serpa.

20) The man is incredibly clear and focused on the task at hand, like he has done this a million times. (He probably has.)

19) He was firm with the jury when he needed to get an important point across, yet sensitive to diffuse any potential tension with his timely wit and personal charisma.

18) Here’s how we did it: every ad in the shortlist was displayed and the jury will collectively decide the award (if any) with a show of hands for Gold, Silver and Bronze. Simple and effective.

17) Any judge can openly raise a discussion about the work before moving on to the next entry. The spirited and respectful debates on the work are probably the most valuable part of this judging experience.

16 – 14) We took the Great PC vs Mac debate to a new dimension altogether; challenged the definitions of innovation versus integration; and even spat in the eye of seemingly award-worthy ideas created without respecting consumers and cultures. Not for the faint of mind.

13) Marcello means business when he said, “We have to be fair to the work, that’s what we are here to do.”

12) Every decision that might affect the fate of an ad was decided by the panel’s vote count; every score was made transparent for all to see on big TV screens; every judge abstained from have any input on his agency’s work by immediately leaving the room, Marcello included.  

11) After completing a category, we reviewed the board of winners and any judge can propose an upgrade or downgrade till the panel collectively agrees on the final tally.

10) While it was a diverse group of judges with many different perspectives, it was always near-unanimity when we came to the very best ads in the categories.

9) Did the number of entries dip? Honestly I don’t know. But I don’t think it affects the quality of the competition, as the impressive line-up of winning work will prove. Agencies will always enter their best work, a budget cut should affect mostly the fringe entries anyway – not really a bad thing if we think about it.

8) Tomorrow, Grand Clios.