RAPP Melbourne duo Tessa Midgley + Jardin Anderson make NYF’s Torch Awards shortlist

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Tessa (left) and Jardin.jpgRAPP Melbourne creative duo, Tessa Midgley (far left) and Jardin Anderson (near left), have been named as one of only five teams to be shortlisted globally for the inaugural New York Festival’s Torch Awards.

 

Midgley and Anderson were shortlisted based on the concept and strategy for their “Road Recovery” campaign, which supported a not-for-profit organisation dedicated to helping young people with addictions and various other challenges. “Road Recovery” enlists entertainment industry professionals who have experienced similar life challenges to help others achieve their full potential.

The team’s dedication and strength of idea ensured they rose to the top of the competition.

Says Midgley: “It was a pitch format so the submission was based on a written application only. Because there was no creative execution the idea needed to be strong and the strategy well thought-out. We came into the office on weekends to make sure that we got it right and within budget. The idea is very creative but the strategy had to be grounded in business reality.”

 

The team will have the opportunity to present their idea in New York on April 30th. In advance of this, they will be working closely with one of the high calibre mentors at this year’s awards who will help bring their idea to life.

This year’s mentors include:

 

  • Bridget Jung, Chief Creative Officer Paris & Regional Creative Director Europe West DIGITASLBI Paris, France
  • Chris Kyme, Chief Executive Officer, Kymechow Communications, Hong Kong
  • Gaston Legorburu, Worldwide Chief Creative Officer, SapientNitro, USA
  • KV Sridhar, Chief Creative Officer, India Sub Continent Leo Burnett, India
  • Debbi Vandever, Global Chief Creative Officer, VML, USA

 

The award underlines the potential of the young team, having only started their working relationship at RAPP Melbourne six months ago. Midgley, a copywriter, viewed advertising as the “funnest” job that she could think of following the realisation that her degree in American History had limited career options. Following a stint as a junior professional surfer, Anderson studied architecture before channelling her artistic passion toward graphic design, drawing inspiration from architecture and furniture design, amongst art forms, for her own creative work.

 

Midgley credits RAPP executive creative director Steve Crawford with teaching them to continuously strive to look at a problem from every possible angle. 

Says Midgley: “He encourages us go back to the drawing board and do more, dig deeper, go further with an idea.”

Says David Brown, RAPP Melbourne managing director: “We waited to get the right team in here, and Jardin and Tessa were well worth the wait. The guys have done all the work for the Torch Awards outside of their day-to-day work requirements, which says as much as about their work ethic as it does about their talent. This will be the first of many awards for Tessa and Jardin and I wish them every success in New York next month.”

Torch Awards Finalist Teams:

Jardin & Tessa

Tessa Midgley, copywriter and Jardin Anderson, art director–Rapp Melbourne, Australia

Witty Committee

Melanie Leonard, art direction student and Edward Miller, copywriting student–Miami Ad School, USA

Hot Nuggets

Jessie Wilks, copywriter and Gerardo Agbuya, art director–Juniper Park Toronto, Canada

DDB Beijing

 Xing Yu Qiu, copywriter–Tribal Worldwide Beijing DDB China; Shi Chuan Tang, account executive–DDB Guaon DDB China Group; and Run Dong Liu, designer–DDB Guaon DDB China Group

Team Ketchum

Jordan Drake, senior media specialist, Samantha Emrich, account executive, and Macaela Mackenzie, creative assistant–Ketchum New York, USA

The Torch Awards was launched this year to champion young creative talent and invite them to compete in a creative challenge, the art of the pitch. Young creatives, age 18-25, were encouraged to enter and review a brief outlining a marketing opportunity to assist Road Recovery and a chance to see their campaign selected to go live.

New York Festivals has partnered with Road Recovery, a non-profit organization “dedicated to helping young people battle addiction and other adversities by harnessing the influence of entertainment industry professionals who have confronted similar crises and now wish to share their experience, knowledge, and resources.”

To view the Torch Award Mentors and Judges click here.

For more information on the Torch Awards visit: www.newyorkfestivals.com/torchawards. For more information on Road Recovery please visit: www.roadrecovery.org.