A record number of ICAD Bells were awarded at the ICAD Awards which were held last night in Vicar Street.
In all, seven golds, 26 silvers and 66 bronze awards were handed out on the night.
Chemistry bagged two gold awards for its Jonah Loma Tribute while Rothco also walked away with two golds for its Shred of Decency campaign for Daintree which saw it win at Cannes Lions in 2015. The Rothco-owned Guns or Knives also picked up a gold bell for work with Hailo and its “Introducing the Hetrophobic Taxi Driver” campaign in the activation/experiential category.
The other two gold Bells went to Irish International for the RSA’s campaign “Don’t Look Back” TV commercial and another for art direction/production design for the John Hammond, Intolerant Champion TV commercial for Guinness.
The biggest winner on the night was Boys and Girls which walked away with a whopping 22 awards.
According to Elaine McDevitt, Managing Director, ICAD said: “It appears that this year may be a golden era for Irish advertising and design in terms of creativity and optimism. I’ve taken to terming it our very own ‘Bell’ époque! The judges noted the high standard of entries and remarked on the evident bravery from clients in supporting great ideas. The increase in entries in lots of categories indicates that the recession is finally loosening its grip and brands and companies are willing to spend again. We are hopeful for this momentum to continue and that next year’s awards will be even more record-breaking.”
For nearly 60 years the ICAD Bell has remained a coveted prize within Ireland’s creative community. The juries for each category judge work based on three criteria to establish the creative excellence of the work submitted: original and inspiring idea, well executed and relevant to its context.
