NZ agencies and producers won a total of 15 Gold Pencils – led by Colenso BBDO (five Golds), O&M (four), DDB (three), Assembly (two) and Clemenger BBDO Wellington (one) – at Friday’s 39th AWARD Australia Awards held at Carriageworks Sydney as part of the Semi Permanent festival.

Back for its second year, Phantom Billstickers have released their Musicians of Aotearoa posters to celebrate NZ Music Month 2018. 

FCB has won a Vehicle Testing NZ creative pitch. Three agencies were involved. The incumbent was Assignment but the other pitchers have not been identified.

Special Group has been ranked the Most Effective Independent Agency in all Asia-Pacific, and #6 Most Effective Independent Agency in the world (six places above Droga5 NYC, and 48 places above Mother London) in the London-based Effie Effectiveness Index.

NZ music publishing company Songbroker has now set up office in Los Angeles with Kiwi musician Greg Johnson representing the catalogue.

Grey Lynn-based programmatic agency Acquire Online is now offering its Waze navigation app as an advertising tool. Waze currently claims 36,000 Kiwi customers.

Colenso BBDO and the Monteith’s have launched the beermaker’s new communications platform, Brewed For Right Now, since 1868.

Phantom Billstickers has continued to expand its cunning locations in Auckland’s high-traffic areas, including Bond St in the Grey Lynn/Kingsland/Arch Hill gateways to the city – and the gateway to Eden Park.

Jacinda Ardern and the NZ Herald are leading a push to integrate creativity into all areas of NZ society, following the release of a Creative NZ survey yesterday.