Last week RightsInfo’s founder Adam Wagner was in New York City pitching for a prestigious prize at the D&AD Impact Awards. As RightsInfo’s newest (and only) New York correspondent, Anna Dannreuther was there to see the drama in action!
Dubbed the “Oscars of the advertising industry”, the D&AD Impact Awards celebrate transformative, creative ideas that have had real impact and contribute towards a fairer, better, and more sustainable future for all.
RightsInfo was a finalist in the Impact Promise category. New for 2017, this category awards ideas with the potential to impact across all 12 of D&AD’s award categories that could benefit from the exposure, mentoring, and other goodies that D&AD Impact can offer.
‘The Oscars of the Advertising Industry’
RightsInfo’s founder Adam Wagner pitching for the prize! Image Credit: Anna Dannreuther / RightsInfo
The entries were judged by four gurus from the advertising world (including D&AD’s CEO Tim Lindsay), and the final stage of the competition was an 8am breakfast pitch at the D&AD Impact Award headquarters in New York.
The eight finalists were given just 3-minutes to make their final impression on the judges. Audience members were delighted to see the eclectic range of projects on offer. Amongst them, a finger-reader for the blind, which translates written content into audio, a bone-marrow donor-donee Facebook matching program, and a project in Nigeria connecting young women to inspirational stories and life advice through a mobile phone. Following their pitches, contestants were subjected to questions from the judges and audience.
After the breakfast pitch, contestants were free to enjoy a day in New York while the judges deliberated. Before bidding the contestants and audience farewell for the day, the judges emphasised how difficult their task was, given the range of outstanding candidates.
‘A Range of Outstanding Candidates’
The swanky awards ceremony for the winners. Image Credit: Anna Dannreuther / RightsInfo
The winners were announced at an awards ceremony in downtown Manhattan that evening. The joint winners were Petit Pli, which creates durable and sustainable clothing that grows with children from 4 – 36 months, and Straightline, a UK-based offshoot from the Prison Radio Association, offering digital content for people released from prison or with other connections to the criminal justice system.
Although RightsInfo did not take home the prize, the winners were excellent, and RightsInfo was delighted to be selected as a Finalist in this prestigious category.
