The NSW Government’s ‘Discreet Life’ HIV awareness campaign by Wavemaker won the prestigious Grand Prix at the 2021 MFA Awards, announced in a live streamed event this afternoon.
The awards celebrated the most effective and impactful work created by media agencies in 2020 and 2021. The winners were chosen by silent vote and include Initiative, OMD, UM, Essence, Mindshare, MediaCom, 10ViacomCBS and Yahoo.
More than 100 judges participated in the rigorous judging process, drawn from agencies, client side, industry bodies and MFA Awards sponsors. They commended the quality of the winners’ work, praising the clever media thinking delivered in an incredibly tough environment, excellent audience understanding, exceptional agility and strong results.
The NGEN Award, which recognises the talent of young media agency executives with less than five years’ experience, was won by Gemma Harriss from Zenith and Thomas Murphy from The Media Store, with their entry for UnLtd charity Indigenous Literacy Foundation.
As part of the awards ceremony, the MFA launched its new industry purpose ‘We are the Changers’, which serves to unite the industry and highlight the valuable role agency people play in creating change for clients, the economy and for society at large. Watch the video here: https://youtu.be/D-RNhidkRWA
MFA Awards Committee Chair Joe Lunn, Chief Technology & Transformation Officer at Mindshare, said: “In showcasing and celebrating the most innovative and effective media thinking in Australia, the ultimate goal of the MFA Awards is to help elevate the quality of product we deliver across the entire industry and demonstrate the invaluable role that media agencies play in generating business growth for our clients. Congratulations to all of this year’s finalists and winners who have done exactly that.”
MFA CEO Sophie Madden (main photo) added: “We’re pleased we were able to bring the industry together virtually to recognise and reward work that has delivered tangible brand and business results. Australian media agencies and their clients showed great agility, perseverance and ingenuity throughout the many challenges thrown at them over the past two years, delivering some of the most insightful and effective work we’ve ever seen – and really living up to the promise of our industry purpose, of being the Changers. We applaud all of the finalists and winners of the 2021 MFA Awards who have set the standard for strategic thinking and effectiveness.”
The 2021 MFA Awards winners are:
Behaviour Change
NSW Government, Discreet Life, Wavemaker
Business Impact – Sponsored by QUANTCAST
Swinburne University of Technology, Swintopia, Initiative
Innovation in Media – Sponsored by SBS Media
IAG, CGU Rescues Donuts for Dogs, Mindshare
Brand Impact – Sponsored by OMA
Swinburne University of Technology, Swintopia, Initiative
Partnerships
Dell Australia, Dell Change Makers, MediaCom & 10ViacomCBS
Covid Media Pivot
MARS, Freshen up Behind Your Mask, MediaCom
Best Long-Term Results
nib, Delivering an Unfair Market Share, Essence (previously AKQA Media)
Best Use Of Data & Analytics
Defence Force Recruiting, Deep Data Dive into the Australian Navy, UM
Real-time Marketing
McDonald’s, Macca’s Monopoly = Playing to WIN!, OMD
Best Use Of Content
Tourism Australia, Live From Aus, UM
Bravery – Sponsored by Nine Network
IAG, CGU Rescues Donuts for Dogs, Mindshare
NGEN Award – Supported by UnLtd
Gemma Harriss, Zenith & Thomas Murphy, The Media Store
Pro Bono/Cause Marketing Incentive – In recognition of Pam Lane Coles Brand Responsibility, OMD
Media Partner
Yahoo
Agency Talent & Culture
Initiative’s Iso-Internship
GRAND PRIX – Sponsored by Seven Network
NSW Government, Discreet Life, Wavemaker
