PARIS, Today: Craft, clever thinking and a healthy dose of “how did they even come up with that?” led the way at this year’s AdForum PHNX Awards.
Brazil had a particularly good night, taking out two Grand Prix wins across Film and Digital.
The FILM GRAND PRIX went to “Invisible Stain” by BETC Havas in Brazil for Vanish.
The beautifully animated film follows a juice stain on a young boy’s sweater, using it as a clue to the deeper emotional stain of being bullied at school.
It also shows how love can take on the “stain monsters”, continuing Reckitt’s run of purpose-led campaigns for the Vanish brand.
Jurors also praised the craft behind the DIGITAL GRAND PRIX, awarded to Cappuccino/Weber Shandwick in Brazil for “T-Search” for NGO Mães da Sé.
Inspired by bootleg tees, the campaign replaced pop culture icons with AI-generated images of missing children.
Sold on the same streets where the children disappeared, the T-shirts became a media phenomenon, with bold graphics, attention-grabbing typography and even government backing.
The DESIGN GRAND PRIX went to The Bold Group from Saudi Arabia for “Hold What Matters”.
The new Zumi bottle reimagines a 1,600-year-old tradition, carrying Zamzam, the sacred water of Makkah, in a vessel called the Dorag.
While the ritual had faded in the modern world, Zumi brings it back in a form that feels both contemporary and timeless.
The STRATEGY & TECHNIQUE GRAND PRIX went to Dentsu Creative, France, for “The Covert Recruiter”.
The French Army needed to recruit cyber soldiers, which is tricky when your target audience tends to operate under the radar.
So Dentsu Creative placed an irresistible flaw inside the digital campaign, tempting hackers to find it and follow a rabbit hole into a complex online game.
The campaign also won Gold in the new WTF category, created to recognise the genuinely unprecedented.
The jury chose not to award Grand Prix for PRINT or GOOD CAUSES this year, deciding the Gold winners were equally deserving and opting not to single one out.
AdForum launched the PHNX Awards during lockdown in 2020 to celebrate the resilience of creativity. Since then, it has grown into one of the more unusual shows on the awards calendar.
Its jury includes creatives, planners, executives, clients, PRs, marketers and consultants, because apparently one type of industry opinion was not nearly chaotic enough.
This year, close to 1000 jurors voted online, with the Grand Prix winners chosen after live debates.
The Grand Prix winners were:
FILM
“Invisible Stain” for Vanish by BETC Havas, Brazil
DIGITAL
“T-Search” for Mães da Sé by Cappuccino/Weber Shandwick, Brazil
STRATEGY & TECHNIQUE
“The Covert Recruiter” for the French Army by Dentsu Creative, France
DESIGN
“Hold What Matters” for the Zumi bottle by The Bold Group, Saudi Arabia
AGENCY OF THE YEAR
MUW / Saatchi & Saatchi, Slovakia
INDEPENDENT AGENCY OF THE YEAR
Tech and Soul, Brazil
NETWORK OF THE YEAR
DENTSU CREATIVE
- Full list of the winners here
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