Australia’s Steve Back invited on New York Festivals’ exclusive jury to judge 2011 ad awards

New York Festivals International Advertising Awards has added an exclusive group of prominent worldwide chief creative officers and ECDs to participate in one group in a live judging session.

This elite group – which includes Australian Steve Back (left), now CCO at Ogilvy Singapore – assembled from the world’s best ad agencies, will select the 2011 trophy winners from the Finalists winners.

Additionally, NYF is introducing a new sophisticated and precise judging system endorsed by the executive jury. The group judging sessions will take place in New York from May 1 – 5. The deadline to enter is January 28.

Executive jury members to date include:

* Steve Back, Chief Creative Officer, Ogilvy & Mather, Singapore

* Rob Feakins, Chief Creative Officer/President, Publicis

* Jonathan Harries, Vice Chairman/Global Chief Creative Officer, Draftfcb

* Rei Inamoto, Chief Creative Officer, AKQA

* Akira Kagami, Executive Advisor and Global Executive Creative Advisor, Dentsu

* Tham Khai Meng, Worldwide Creative Director & Chairman, WW Creative Council, Ogilvy & Mather Worldwide

* Ronald Ng, Executive VP/Executive Creative Director, BBDO

* Benjamin Palmer, Founder & Chief Creative Officer, Barbarian Group

* Mark Tutssel, Worldwide Chief Creative Officer, Leo Burnett Worldwide

* Graham Warsop, Founder & Chief Creative Officer, The Jupiter Drawing Room (South Africa)

* Conway Williamson, Chief Creative Officer, Saatchi & Saatchi

Additional executive jury members will be announced soon.

“Adding a live-judging element to the current online-judging process allows us to combine the best of both worlds with regard to the judging processes,” said Michael O’Rourke, president of International Awards Group. “The online Grand Jury allows us to assemble 250 award winning creative directors representing over 50 countries ensuring diversity and unequaled fairness. The newly formed Executive Jury’s live-judging sessions will take place to ensure each entry that has progressed to the Finalist stage will be given the hands-on attention it deserves, while avoiding the judging fatigue factor that often plagues other advertising competitions.”

The 2011 executive jury, comprised of 30-40 of advertising’s most highly awarded executives, will utilize NYF’s new sophisticated scoring system designed to improve the accuracy of each entry’s score and will convene the week of May 1st at the prestigious Paley Center for Media, located at 25 West 52nd Street in New York City.  The four-day series of events, including seminars and exhibits, culminates with the annual International Advertising Award presentations taking place on Wednesday, May 4th, and on Thursday, May 5th, 2011.

“For quite a while, we have listened to what senior advertising creatives wanted changed in judging systems of international advertising shows. With their engagement, encouragement and enthusiastic support, we gave them what they asked for and more. The Executive Jury will prove to be the best advertising jury ever assembled on one panel, and we couldn’t be more delighted to have heeded their call,” said Jim Smyth, CEO, International Awards Group.

The NYF International Advertising Awards competition receives entries from 70 countries and recognizes work in all media in the following competitions:  Art/Technique + Technology, Avant-Garde, Collateral, Design, Digital & Interactive, Hispanic USA Advertising, Marketing Effectiveness, Mixed Media, Outdoor, Print, Public Relations/Brand Communications, Public Service Announcements, Radio, Student and Television/Cinema.

The Final Deadline to enter the NYF’s 2011 International Advertising Awards competition is January 28th, 2011. Winners will be celebrated May 4-5th in New York and promoted by a network of representatives in 75 countries.