Tay Guan Hin’s One Show Diary: Gold pencils, volleyball + torn ligaments in Santa Barbara

Last week Tay Guan Hin was one of Asia’s representatives on the One Show jury. Here JWT’s Regional Executive Creative Director for South East Asia (pictured left with W+K’s Jim Riswold) gives a few insights into the judging process, held in Santa Barbara, California.

I’ve known Mary Warlick and Kevin Swanepoel for almost 12 years since we first met in Xiamen for a One Show Conference when China first opened her doors to the world. So I couldn’t pass the opportunity to be a part of it again when I was invited. You could say seeing them again feels more like a reunion.

Judging took place in Santa Barbara, California, at the Four Seasons Resort Biltmore. For the first time, a special jury panel consisting of 11 members was dedicated to the format of print. Previously, the same jury would judge everything. The judges include, Jim Riswold, who was recently inducted into the Hall of Fame. Those unfamiliar with his name might be familiar with his work, he creating memorable campaigns for Nike. His iconic commercials “Bo Knows;” “Hello World” featuring Tiger Woods;” and the work that paired Michael Jordan and Spike Lee as Mars Blackmon defined a new era in advertising. He heads the agency’s experiential ad school W+K 12.

In her opening remarks, Mary Warlick talked about bringing back the importance of print. Sure it doesn’t command as much attention today as it did years ago, but we shouldn’t overlook great print work by judging it too quickly.

In this age of digital technology, the art of doing great print ads has been lost. The careful choice of typefaces, hours of detailed craftsmanship that made layouts look amazing and the way headline, visual and copy come together so effortlessly are becoming rare.

To communicate a concept on one single sheet of paper is still not an easy thing to do. Over the last few days, I have reignited my love for this medium. It’s a luxury to be able to spend quality time examining each piece in its full glory. From touching the actual texture of the paper to turning the pages of a magazine to seeing the brilliant colors shine on a high gloss poster, made me realize how a single piece of paper continues to interact with me in ways the digital medium can’t. Print can also be more believable as it’s more permanent. Unlike the digital content, which is more fluid, thus info can be edited or deleted easily.

The One Show has received over 21,200 entries for the 2014 season, up 1,200 entries from last year.  Over 60 countries were represented. New advertising categories include Craft for art direction and writing. And the Direct category made a comeback.

Instead of putting us in a dark room, we had the privilege of judging in a beautiful sun-lit hall overlooking the South China Sea. Hearing the waves crashing into the ocean while we judge helped us to relax and concentrate on the task at hand.

All the print, poster and collateral were spread out on long tables so we could physically examine each piece carefully. Scanning scores using QR codes thru our iPads made the process easy and fast.

The organizer made the judging environment very enjoyable. Everyday the lunch venue changed, one day we even had a picnic with a specially set up grass area to play volleyball. During one of the heated matches, Kevin dived to save a point but in doing so sprained a muscle which he received a cast for his leg. He was in high spirits when he returned later to drink with us.

The One Club was founded as the Advertising Writers Association of NY, so it’s fitting to see some copy ads making a come back. Some copy was long, insightful and persuasively written while others were short, clever and punchy.

There were pretty obvious ideas in the mix but the level of execution lifted it to the next level. “Don’t text and drive” seemed to be a common theme from many car manufactures. The question is do they belong to public service or consumers products? One small observation is the countless use positive/negative images that form different visuals. I spotted at least one in each category.

Overall, ads that challenged and made me think usually provoked my emotion, the ones that didn’t, did not appear back on the table.

All the entries were judged online first, followed by two more rounds of screening. We saw over 2,000 pieces, however less than 10% made the cut. For the final round, the ads might still get voted out. Votes on a scale from 1-10 were scored but we don’t know who the winners are since there was no discussion. The non-discussion is what makes the One Show the One Show. Silent casting of scores keep the integrity of the selection, a process they have successfully applied over the years.

As for the awards night, the One Club has decided to combine all disciplines, including advertising, interactive, design and branded entertainment into one award show, adeptly called “The One Show”. It will award Gold Pencils only while silvers and bronze pencils will be honored during special ceremonies throughout the Creative Week.

“The new format holds true to The One Club’s enduring mission, which is to maintain the highest standard for creative excellence.  While some of our competitors continue to add shows in order to penetrate new markets and verticals, we take a different approach: Honoring and presenting the world’s best in purest form.  You will not find higher quality creative work anywhere else in the world, at any other show, than at The One Show on May 9th.”, said Mary Warlick.

The finalists will be notified the second week of April, so look out for it! Good luck and hope your work makes it into the book.

Pics from top: Lunch with Dean Sciole, TBWA/Hakuhodo Beijing, David Guerrero, BBDO Guerrero/Proximity Philippines, Anselmo Ramos, Ogilvy Sao Paulo.

Picnic in the courtyard.