With lockdowns happening left, right and centre, and a vaccine rollout that’s slower than a wet week, it’s fair to say a lot of us are feeling a little deflated right now.

[Looking for the live stream of B&T’s Best of the Best awards? You’ve found it – click here!]

However, one thing that’s certainly lifted our spirits here at B&T is recognising the incredible amount of talent in the pool of advertising, marketing, media and technology.

Our newest awards program, Best of the Best, has turned out to be a raging success, with people from all corners of the industry throwing their hats in the ring and showcasing their individual prowess.

The judges have had the difficult task of going through all the ridiculously good entries for Best of the Best with a fine-tooth comb to uncover those with just that extra bit of sparkle, and we’re happy to report that they are finally finished!

That’s right, we are ready and raring to pull back the curtain and reveal the shortlist for the inaugural Best of the Best awards, presented by Finecast.

If you’re on the list (HUGE congrats), please make sure your name and company are spelled correctly.

If you win, a trophy really won’t look as good if it doesn’t have the correct name on it. Please email riin@bandt.com.au with any changes.

Now, before we do the all-important reveal, it’s important to flag a change to the official proceedings.

In light of the current COVID situation, we’ve decided to play it safe and take the awards into a virtual arena. The Best of the Best ceremony will kick off on Friday 10 September at 4pm (AEST). Register HERE now to secure your free spot!

Once again, a big thanks to our wonderful judges, along with presenting partner Finecast and sponsors HubSpot and Shopper Media for all your support. We simply couldn’t be putting on such a grand event without each and every one of you!

Now, without further ado, here’s the shortlist for the first-ever Best of the Best awards…

Casting Director

Alison Fowler, Chicken and Chips Casting

Stephanie Pringle, Chicken and Chips Casting

Stevie Ray, McGregor Casting

Commercial Director

Aisling Colley, BMF

Alexandra Gannon, Reload Media

Jessica Miles, Integral Ad Science

Kristie Thistlethwaite, The Works

Liam Daly, Acast

Lisa Squillace, 10 ViacomCBS

Rachel Page, Verizon Media

Tim Fernandes, Man of Many

Tobey Bower, Alpha Digital

Consultant

Alex Hayes, Clear Hayes Consulting

Greg Graham, The Nest Consultancy

Content Producer

Ashley Diamond, George P. Johnson

Ayesha Kiely, MediaCom

Garry Major, Verizon Media

Creative

Ben Welsh, DDB

Gary Head, XPO Brands

Jesse Whitmore, Playground XYZ

Justin Drape, Exceptional Alien

Mandie van der Merwe, M&C Saatchi

Pia Chaudhuri, BMF

Tara Ford, The Monkeys

Data Scientist

Dan Richardson, Verizon Media

Dr Juan Franco, GroupM

Gareth Tomlin , 10 ViacomCBS

Graham Burton, Playground XYZ

Mette Breith, OMD

Developer

Bryan Amos, ARN

Greg Dawidko , Finder

Pedro Maceratta, Finecast

Puravin Sivaganam, Playground XYZ

Entrepreneur

Adam Crow, Blended Digital

Anne Miles, Suits&Sneakers

Marilla Akkermans, Equality Media

Mo Moubayed and Jeremy Yang, Veridooh

Paris Thomson, SIRAP

Sharon Gray and Jesse McLallen, The Spec Sheet

Tamara Alaveras and Sonia Majkic, 3 Phase Marketing

Tash Menon, MASH Brands

Executive Leader (sponsored by HubSpot)

Adam Furness, Impact

Aimee Buchanan, OMD

Beverley McGarvey, 10 ViacomCBS

Cameron Bryant, Sparro

Daniel Ricciardo, Optus

James Bayes, The Trade Desk

Kirsty Muddle, Cummins&Partners

Michael McEwan, M&C Saatchi

Paul Sigaloff, Verizon Media

Rob Dougan, Tourism Australia

Experiential Producer

Jade Alyward, XPO Brands

Jeremy Garling, Fourth Wall

Sharice Bellantonio, Usual Suspects

Film Director

Alina Gozin’a, interdisciplinary artist

Paris Thomson, SIRAP

Journalist

Hugh Riminton, 10 ViacomCBS

Nick Hall, Man of Many

Sarah O’Carroll, Verizon Media/Yahoo Finance

Marketer (sponsored by HubSpot)

Angela Greenwood, Optus

Ant Schillaci, BlueScope

Farzeen Quadir-Hegde, Asus

Jemma Downey, Carlton & United Breweries

Lisa Allan, The Smith Family

Lisa Ronson, Coles Group

Louise Cummins, H&R Block

Melissa Rodrigues, Minor Hotels

Sarah Gallon, Tourism Australia

Media Director (sponsored by Shopper Media Group)

Aimee Buchanan, OMD

Claire Butterworth, GroupM

Imogen Hewitt, Spark Foundry

Marilla Akkermans, Equality Media

Paul Murphy, Cummins&Partners

Philippa Noilea-Tani, Wavemaker

Mentor

Andy Procopis , ARN

Anthony Murdoch, 10 ViacomCBS

Hannah Jones, Sparro

Karla Henwood, Squeak E. Clean Studios

Kate Toon, Stay Tooned

Leigh Morrison, be. Transition Coaching

Lisa Lie, Half Dome

Vanessa Arden Wood, 10 ViacomCBS

Planning Director (sponsored by Finecast)

Chris Colter, Initiative

Douglas Nicol, The Works

Jamarr Mills, Essence

James Boardman, Wavemaker

Joe Lunn, Mindshare

Kate Smither, The Tall Planner

Sophie Langton, Spark Foundry

Sophie Price, MediaCom

Project Manager

Nishtha Risbud, News Corp

Oliver Oxenham, Foxtel Media (Fox Sports)

Regina Rauch, The Lumery

Public Relations

Azadeh Williams, AZK Media

Emma-Jane Granleese, History Will Be Kind

Taylor Blackburn, Finder

Recruiter/HR

Anna O’Dea, Agency Iceberg

Emma Davis, JCDecaux

Esther Clerehan, CLEREHAN Pty Ltd

Nicola Jenkins, MediaCom

Social Change Maker

Anne Miles, Suits&Sneakers

Laura Prael, LEP Digital

Sandra Sully, 10 ViacomCBS

Shani Langi, Usual Suspects

Tess Phillips, JCDecaux

Strategist (sponsored by Finecast)

Alex Cleanthous, Webprofits

Anna Cherry, Spark Foundry

Bel Harper, oOh!media

Bethanie Blanchard, Carat

Cristina Smart, JCDecaux

Jessica Quiney, George P. Johnson

Linda Fagerlund, Carat

Melinda Lofts, M&C Saatchi Group

Rob Dougan, Tourism Australia

Sophie Price, MediaCom

Technologist

Charles Pham, Impact

Dylan Dharmadasa, Finecast

James Bayes, The Trade Desk

Joe Waller, Finder

John Jee, 10 ViacomCBS

Kruti Patel, Super Rewards

Mo Moubayed and Jeremy Yang, Veridooh

Paul Bailey, Tourism Australia

Ryan Menezes, GroupM

Steve Nash, Playground XYZ