Top Agencies and Brands Awarded at 2016 National American Advertising Awards

The AAF awarded National Gold and Silver ADDY Awards, with Leo Burnett Chicago and College for Creative Studies students winning Best of Show.

WASHINGTON, D.C., Jun. 15, 2016—Today's caliber of advertising was showcased at last week's annual American Advertising Awards Show and Dinner. Top creatives, brands and advertising agencies were awarded with Leo Burnett Chicago winning Best of Show in the Professional division and Jason Manns and Ellen Wareham, students of the College for Creative Studies, winning Best of Show in the Student division.

This year, the Competition received a record-number of entries for the local competitions at more than 40,000 entries. Leo Burnett Chicago won Best of Show in addition to its 3 Gold ADDY Awards and 2 Silver ADDY Awards for its work for Allstate Insurance Company, Eggo, Esurance and McDonald's. Also winning Best of Show were two students from the College for Creative Studies, Jason Manns and Ellen Wareham, for "Holocaust" in the Mass Transit category, which transformed a city bus into an old-fashioned train - similar to the kind that transported prisoners to Auschwitz - with the chilling text "Imagine not knowing your final stop." on its side.

"Tonight, we celebrate innovation, insight, creativity and technical expertise that is uniquely American," said James Edmund Datri, President & CEO of the American Advertising Federation, during the Show. "These awards acknowledge the achievement of that perfect combination of superlative creative, spectacular technique and stellar execution. We proudly showcase the best of the best, and celebrate a new class of leaders in the advertising industry who inspire us all."

Hosted by the American Advertising Federation (AAF), the American Advertising Awards is the advertising industry's largest and most representative competition, attracting more than 40,000 entries every year from local Club (Ad Club) competitions. The mission of the Awards is to recognize and reward the creative spirit of excellence in the art of advertising. This year was no exception with 135 top agencies and brands represented from across the nation.

View a complete list of winners here.

Student work from across the country was also recognized representing 47 colleges and universities. The 47 schools were collectively awarded 23 Gold ADDY Awards and 46 Silver ADDY Awards. View a complete list of Student Gold and Silver winners.

To learn more about the American Advertising Awards, contact Sara Yoskoski via email or at (202) 898-0089.

Chalk Talk 2016: Ready to Rumble

It seems like Cam Newton is the only one who doesn't want to talk about Super Bowl 50... and even he might have an opinion about PuppyMonkeyBaby. 

Thursday evening AAF Seattle and PSAMA are hosting Chalk Talk 2016, which is an opportunity for us all to take another look at the ads that worked and the ads that didn't.  With #ChalkTalk2016 hashtag, there's a chance for you to get in the game, too!

Get your tickets now before they're gone.

We've assembled a fantastic panel and an amazing moderator to have a tremendous discussion. (That might be a record for most superlatives in one sentence.) Let's take a look at these wise and learned participants: 

Chris Copacino
Account Director
Copacino+Fujikado
(Moderator)

Chris has been at Copacino+Fujikado for 12+ years, joining the agency out of school after graduating from Western Washington University. Early in his career, Chris worked predominantly on national brand, promotional and grand opening initiatives for REI. Over Chris’ time at C+F he has led several major agency accounts including Ste. Michelle Wine Estates, Symetra Financial, Overlake Hospital and the Washington Forest Protection Association. Chris also oversees new business at C+F, managing all new client acquisition and business development efforts. Chris gets strong reviews from his clients for his ability to study and deeply understand their business. A lover of the creative process and unabashed agency guy, Chris blends a keen business mind with the understanding and appreciation of great creative work to achieve client objectives.

Scott Battishill
Principal / Founder of
Curator

Scott has been practicing PR for nearly 20 years. And no other term grates at him more than, “spin.” He's always disliked it. He believes that people don’t build relationships—certainly not ones that last—by spinning the truth to each other. Brands are no different. Consumers are loyal to brands they trust, that are human, to those that create an experience rather than an offering. With this philosophy in mind, he founded Curator to help brands build relationships with consumers in today’s highly complex marketplace of conversation. Prior to Curator Scott served as the SVP and Senior Director of PR for DDB Worldwide; overseeing the strategic development and execution of award-winning communications programs for major Fortune 100 companies and small development brands alike.

Mary Knight
Principal, ECD
Hydrogen

Mary started in Dallas, Texas on accounts like American Airlines, Doritos, Tabasco and Imperial Sugar. After falling in love with the Pacific Northwest, she moved to Borders Perrin Norrander in Seattle (now FCB.) There, Mary was part of the team that pitched, won and did award-winning work for Hewlett Packard, Group Health Cooperative, Tacoma Guitars and Boeing. She moved to FCB Chicago in 2007 to run Qwest and Kraft. While in Chicago, Mary also led Motorola, the Nestlè pizza business and the global Sharpie account. Mary returned to Seattle in 2012 as Principal and ECD of Hydrogen – an independent agency devoted to simplicity in advertising. Hydrogen’s regional, national and international clients including Keysight Technologies, Artemis Wines and Kenworth trucks. Mary has served on several prestigious juries including The One Show, Communication Arts, Effie and the National ADDYs.

Cal McAllister 
Co-Founder, CEO
Wexley School for Girls

(As told and typed by his 6-year-old niece, Louisa.) 
"Uncle Cow is a man, and he is nice! He is a joyfle man. He has 2 neeses, and 1 nefuwe. He likes chikins. He has soft scruffy hair. He has a nice wife named Amanda who takes showers 100 times a day. He has a verey good tast. He is a strong man. He is a writer at Wexley School for girls. His favorite house anamle is a dog. And he is a verey good prson. He is a nice, and cinde friend. He likes bar-ba-qie. He is a funny man, and is 42 years old. He is a asom prson, he is hansome, and a verey good dresser. He has 2 tatoos. He likes playing soccer. He takes shorter time in the bathroom than his wife. He has a verey smart brain. He is a little strange sometimes! " Wexley is a fan factory, cultivating and igniting consumer’s love for brands. It is an advertising agency that creates joy and laughter for engaged fanatics who deliver value – in the real world and on the wide web one. 

Troy McCall
Creative Director

After stints as an Art Director/Assoc. Creative Director in Dallas, Denver, and Memphis, Troy now calls Seattle home where he continues to do freelance work for a wide variety of clients. Along the way, he's helped develop careers, launch new brands, and guide multi-faceted campaigns for Fortune 500 companies. Clients include the Dallas Cowboys, Elvis Presley Enterprises, Hilton Hotel Corporation, Microsoft, and FedEx. Troy is an avid sports enthusiast, and when he's not busy working, he can usually be found on the rugby pitch either playing or refereeing.

Ronan O’Mahony
Director, Brand & Advertising
T-Mobile

For the past 15 years Ronan has worked in advertising and brand strategy, both agency- and client-side. Ronan currently manages National, Local, and Hispanic advertising for T-Mobile, where he has worked since 2012. Prior to that Ronan was Director of Brand at Rhapsody.