Happy birthday and happy holidays!

We've got quite a number of JWT folks celebrating their birthdays over the holidays. Before you all pack up your desks and whisk off to your vacations, you might want to take note of these people and greet them on their big days! (Hint! Hint! Hint!)

Happy holidays to everyone!!! See you on January 5!

Dec. 21, Chinkay

Dec. 23, RJ

Dec. 26, Cez

Dec. 26, Zeny

Dec. 27, Kathy

Dec. 30, Josie

Jan. 2, Maan

Jan. 3, Rino

Jan. 3, Onat

JWT introduces new Creative Brief

What makes up a good creative brief? According to JWT Executive Planning Director Pam Garcia, it takes three F words: Focus, flow and...fun! "The task answers the specific problem ideas can address while the stimulus and response is linked tight and inspirational", she explains, "And of course, collaboration between the different departments (Accounts, BAT, Planning and Creatives), should always be fun!"

Last December 12 and 15, Pam (miraculously) had bleary-eyed employees in Juniper as early as 9 am for a workshop to introduce the new JWT Creative Brief. After watching a short perk-me-up cartoon, gobbling baked mac for breakfast, and downing cups of caffeine from Tesscafe, the JWT zombies found themselves feeling human enough to get into Pam's written exercises and thorough explanation of the new brief.

"The new JWT brief is definitely better than the old one!", Pam exclaims, "It's a lot more fun to do and the additional stuff are definitely useful. We start by defining the problem tightly and completing with an inspiring stimulus and an actionable response. It can be a challenge, but a fun and fulfilling one at that!"

It's important to note that everyone has their own part to play in the creative process apart from the Creatives. After all, a great brief is the springboard of great ideas. With this in mind, we look forward to creating bigger and better ideas with the new brief in 2009!

Dec. 12: a sense of accomplishment for BAT and Accounts

problemizing the problem

Dec. 15: Creatives and Planning class picture

jos expounds on the importance of the brand idea

Happy Birthday, Jos!

Happy, happy birthday to JWT's fearless leader--Jos d'Boss! Everyone gathered at the Entertainment Area last Friday to surprise him with a dinner, a video and a gift! (apart from Sir Gary's special envelope)

Cheers, Jos!!!

waiting for jos who was in a "meeting" with pam and leah

"tagal naman nila..gutom na kami!"

SURPRISE!!!

party host sir gary presents the gift

a painting by sensei

watch the video!

Golda gives birth to baby Julia!

At 11:34 pm last night, the Roldans happily greeted their new baby girl, Julia Noelle "Juno" Aguilar Roldan! Delivered via CS and weighing at 8.2 lbs, the healthy little one already bears a strong resemblance to her daddy (who we're sure is absolutely smitten).

Congratulations to Onat and Golda from their JWT family! Here's wishing a speedy recovery for Golda as well.

Hmmm, we wonder if she'll grow up to be a hotshot ad person just like her parents. (or a supermodel as her parents are already declaring)

little onat?

China Wins JWT Manila Foosball Tournament!

Sports history is replete with dramatic moments wherein the underdog arose to beat the odds and score an unexpected victory. The Pacquiao VS Dela Hoya bout provides a more recent example.

On 12.08.08, JWT Manila was witness to another classic when the underdog team of Malibu Fly Honeyz swept the Foosball Finals against the previously undefeated Joe D' Maggie duo.

Looking back at the road they took to the finals reveals a classic underdog story for the books. The Malibu Fly Honeyz were initially defeated by team Power Trip (JV The Mouth Villones and Jos The Boss Ortega) in the elimination round forcing them to fight along with the rest of the field for the lone wildcard slot. The Honeyz eventually stepped up and took the coveted slot against a competitive field of fellow losers.

Breaking into the Magic 8 round, the Honeyz first disposed of Team Matinik Na Burnik which starred Earthquake Custodio and DJ Sneaky Rojas.

They next took on the heavyweight team of Di Mo Kaya Ipasok Yung Bola Niyo Sa Butas Namin who had earlier disposed of team Power Trip in a controversial game. Team Malibu overcame the Ice cold nerves of Ice Ice Candido and Rage Villanueva to forge a dream finals match with Compatriot Chinaman Emperor Joe Dy and The Mother of All Foosers, Mommy Maggie.

The night began with an exciting battle for bronze between Team Butas and Chies Carls.

The match saw the crowd cheering for the aftergame feast instead of the actual game. Spaghetti and Pancit were the featured fare.

The supersonic shots of Carl "The Devil" Urgino combined with the supersonic screams of Corky Fajardo were enough to take the win in three sets as they overpowered the curses of the Ice Rage team, which failed to draw enough inspiration from the moral support of latecomer DJ Sneaky Rojas.



In the much anticipated China VS China match, an entire Nation stopped to watch the monumental battle of dragons. Completely forgetting that the other team members were in fact, not Chinese. PRC flags surrouned the Bird's Nest Foosball table as the two teams met for the first time in the tournament. It was expected to be a heated contest fiercer than the fiercest Tigers, with the prize more coveted than the Spratly Islands.

The air was thick with excitement, almost as thick as Knorr Real Chinese Soup. Just Add One Egg. NBA Star Yao Ming even said "Never in the history of China has such a glorious, most fortunate event ever taken place."

The first match was a Wanton noodle display of Shaolin Soccer. Using a mix of Crane and Eagle style shots, Jet Li este Marc Fong and Eugene surprised team Joe D' Maggie. Dy unleashed a few Kung Fu bully shots early on but the Honeyz matched their prowess. The Emperor's Great Wall of China defense was easily sidestepped by the Way of the Fong as team Honeyz took the lead. Madayag was also forced to call a timeout to Secret her Victoria. After the break, Team Joe D' Maggie (whom Jos had picked to make it all the way to the Finals) fought back and tied the match. The lead changed hands faster than Chinese Jackstones until a Fongtabulous Shot ended the round, 10-9.


The second game saw the Honeyz control the fight again, quickly racing to a big lead. At one point, Fong and Eugene seemed destined to coast to an easy win after they erected a dominating 9-5 lead. But Joe D' Maggie responded by stepping up their defense, and Mommy Maggie scored on four straight shots to tie the game. Needing only one more shot to steal the game, momentum was on the side of team D'Maggie as they appeared determined to force a sudden-death third game.

However, the Fortune Cookie just didn't go their way as Marc unleashed a Fongtastic shot that richocheted off the side and sneaked in behind the goalie's reach for the win. That is truly the way of the Fong.


It was the Cinderella story (or should that be Mulan story?) to end all Cinderella stories as they literally rose from elimination to take the whole tournament.

Proving once again that it ain't over till it's over, the Honeyz provided us with an inspiring story that will live on for generations. The villagers in the outlying provinces outside Shezhuan and Gunagzhou will be talking about the legend of The Fong Fenomenon and Mean Eugene for century eggs to come.

Congratulations to The Malibu Fly Honeyz Marc Fong and Eugene Sucayan for the win.



And now, as the fiercely fought competition comes to a close, we honor some of the game's best and brightest stars.

Post Tournament Awards

Most Valuable Player: Mean Eugene "The Scoring Machine" Sucayan

Most Chinese Player: Marc "The Jet" Fong (a suplising upset!)

Most Offensive Player: Gelo "The Amazing Racist" Lico

Most Angry Player: Rachel "Rage" Villanueva

Most Supportive of the Enemy Player: Kat "I-cheered-for-Jos-when-he-scored-against-us" Moldes

Most Biased Commentator: Javey Villones

Most Unlucky Lucky Charm: Sneaky Rojas

Most Likely to Destroy the Foosball Table: Frank & Amay

All-Deafening Team: Prichie "Screaming Corky" Fajardo and Kathy "Krungky"De Leon

Most O.C.: Maan Bautista

Most Pregnant Player: Golda Roldan

Best in Catering: Tesscafe

Best Reason for a timeout: Maggie "Underwire" Madayag

Best Slang: "She's a Snipah"

Most Siga Angas: Dalla "Lechon Everyday" Sucgang

Best ID Pose: Leona "Sweetness" Bedonia

Best Assets: Denise "DD" Lim

Best Dressed: Marivic "Marvs" Taguba and Mark "Not Anthony Haber" Dehesa

Most Awkward Post Match Hug: RJ and Miss Charo

Happy Birthday, Danni!

Guess who turns a year younger today? Here's wishing a great year ahead for our first December celebrant!

Foosballympics Grand Finals

China vs. China.

6 pm at the Entertainment Area.

Be there.

Muziklaban Finals 2008

The 2008 Red Horse Muziklaban rock challenge concluded peacefully last Saturday at the Marikina Sports Complex. Returning to the judges' table is Griffey De Guzman, the odd man out in a distinguished panel of local rock luminaries.

the panel of judges...

including our very own "griffy"!

After shamelessly promoting his own band Fight Monday and wiping out the buffet table, Griffey helped name Baguio finalists Even as the new grand champion, bagging them one million pesos and a recording contract with Viva Records.

Muziklaban 2008 grand champion, Even

The event was punctuated by an hour and a half performance from Brazilian metalheads Sepultura. Also rockin' backstage were our CEO Jos Ortega, Pao Acosta, Ciox Ciocon (and her yellow shawl), Javey Villones and the special limited edition Sepultura backstage passes, Ivy Sorreda (who braved the General Admission section) and Red Horse Beer Princess Kathy Cosico.

Griffey, Red Horse Beer clients and Sepultura

griffey, jos and pao backstage

cheers, ciox!

Event duration: 14 hours
Crowd attendance: 6,000+
Death toll: 0

Foosballympics Finals is on!

It's been a wild week on the Foosballympic front.

The Final Four match-ups were played over the past couple of days and upsets were the name of the game.

The first game saw the odds on favorite Chies Carls take on Joe D' Maggie. The team of Emperor Cho Ti and Mama Maggie raced to an early first set lead but a series of power shots from Carl "The Bully" Urgino and Corky "Scream" Fajardo saw them come from behind to take the set. In the second game, Joe D' Maggie took a commanding lead, They were a goal away from winning before Carl and Prichie switched positions and unleashed a scoring flurry that cut the lead down to two. But the late comeback fell short when Maggie put the game away for good. In the third set, the deafening screams of the crowd were drowned out by the deafening screams of Corky. Joe D' Maggie led most of the way again but just as Carl and Prichie started to close the gap, Maggie scored on consecutive goals to seal the win.

The second game saw the underdog team Malibu Fly Honeyz, who had fought their way from elimination, face off against the undefeated Di Mo Kaya Ipasok Ang Bola Mo Sa Butas Namin. The Honeyz controlled the first set, as an uncharacteristically Rageless Rachel and Ice Cold Icel seemed off their game. But Team Butas showed why they are one of the favorite teams by handily whipping Mean Eugene and Master Fong in the second set to force a third set. But Master Fong's kung fu skills were put to good use as the Honeyz' defense proved airtight holding their foes scoreless. Not even a series of "pakshets" by Rage and Ice could penetrate the Great Wall of China. On the offensive end, Eugene The Scoring Machine went on a scoring spree that almost shut out the Ice Rage pair. A couple of late goals by Team Butas prevented a kulelat game (a record feat held by Ramon "IT"Alfonso) but Fong and Eugene still took the match.

The victory forged a China VS China face off for the Finals as Joe D' Maggie and Malibu Fly Honeyz go head to head for the coveted 10K cash prize. (How much is that in YUAN?) Expect some Shaolin Soccer style moves and Kung-Foose Hustle defense come the Finals.

Fittingly, whoever controls the abacus-like scoreboards and is spiritually aligned to the feng shui of the Foosball table likely will take the crown.

Schedule of Games: (best of 3)

Game 1: 12/05/08

Game 2: 12/08/08

Game 3: TBA

Eat All You Can Ice Cream

how much ice cream can you eat?

Foosballympics Final Four

It's down to the Final Four teams this afternoon as the race for the grand prize heats up.

Last week's Magic Eight round saw some intense matches as fierce rivals faced off against each other.

In the first game, the duo of Boyet "Earthquake" Custodio and Sneaky Roxas could not contain the "Way of The Fong" and "Mean Eugene" as the Malibu Fly Honeyz upset Matinik na Burnik for the top seed. The wildcard Honeyz made it to the quarter finals via the backdoor after losing their elimination round game a few months back. They look to continue their Cinderella run tonight when they face off against Di Mo Kaya Ipasok Ang Bola Niyo Sa Butas Namin.

The Butas team came from behind and survived a nail biter against Power Trip. With the score at 8 and 9 in favor of the Power Trippers, the game looked to be over until the girls tied the game.

A bully shot by "Rage" Villanueva off Jos The Boss Ortega ended the third set deadlock, and some speculate her stint at JWT as well. Ice Ice Baby Candido had nerves of steel, and came prepared with high heels to better see the table. Not even the barbs of playing commentator Javey Villiones could throw off the damsel duo.

Chies Carls, formerly the Socialist Republic of Carl Mark, swept Solid Joross and Roxanne in their matchup. Prichie "Corky" Fajardo and Carl "The Devil" Urgino overcame Tricky Tricci's trickshots and The Amazing Racist's power game with a series of bullyshots from the evil one. The match saw players switch positions faster and more frequently than an orgy during the end of the world.

In the final game of the quarterfinals, team Joe D' Maggie survived an injury to Emperor Joe Dy as Maggie "The Mom" Madayag powered the team over  Team Ang in three games. After absorbing a beating in their first set, Ramon "Peter v2.0" Alfonso and Lady Charo came roaring back to take the second set. But it just wasn't their night as Mao and Mom put them away for good in the final set.

The Final Four Matchups will see Chies Curls take on Joe D' Maggie while the Malibu Fly Honez face Di Mo Kaya Ipasok Ang Bola Niyo Sa Butas Namin.

If you thought Pacquiao-DelaHoya was the fight of the year, then you're right.

But these games should be fun as well.