4.21.2009
"Unofficially" Thankful
4.02.2009
Passion Patrol invades Manila
The rating system, as devised in 2005, is a Global 1 to 10 rating system used to evaluate the agency product. The scoring method is based on how much time the audience is willing to spend with the material presented to them. It is the standard by which every single piece of work we come up with is judged against.
Together with our own Dave Ferrer, the crew spent three days holed up in the freezing chamber known as the Juniper Board Room, reviewing the latest output from all our Asian offices. They were kept organized by Regional Creative Officer Betty Tsai of Shanghai. Discussions ranged from praising, critiquing to even dissing work, and touched on how to improve the quality of work.
At sundown, through the duration of their stay, our guests were given a taste of the Manila night life. Wednesday night had them dining at Chef Laudico’s where they sampled gourmet adobo, kare-kare and other local dishes while a storm raged outside. The following night, they were escorted to Mamou in Serendra. True to their non-conformist ways, the group was at one of the most delectable steak joints in town, yet hardly anyone ordered the steak.
The Passion judging sessions wrapped up on Friday, at around noon, ending a half-week long series of grueling debates and meticulous scrutinizing.
Friday afternoon saw JWT Manila hold another First Press session, with four of the Creative gurus regaling the audience with words of wisdom from their rich collective experience. It was a rare opportunity to hear from so many of the top creative minds in the region together, without having to go to AdFest or something of the sort. In attendance were several members from creatives, account management, finance, design, and of course, some of our clients.
The most frequent Manila visitor of the bunch, Guan kicked things off by showing the top scoring work from Q1, which included a couple of pieces from our own office. Among the materials showcased were a funny, unabashedly cheesy TVC from JWT Malaysia for a local cheese snack (starring a recognizable brand-new American President), a revolutionary way of using the Post Office for KitKat from Tokyo and a short film done for Lux, which starred Catherine Zeta Jones.
Ma Yan followed suit, and discussed what JWT China was all about. His talk was quite enlightening and timely, especially with JWT Shanghai recently being named Agency of the Year at the Asian AdFest in Thailand. He described their unparalleled understanding of the Chinese market, their driven resolve for creative work, and their cultural roots being evident in their work. These key points were puncutated by several pieces of work, including guerilla efforts for Anta shoes in the face of huge adspend from competitors during the Beijing Olympics, the AdFest-sweeping Shan Shui ads and their world famous Bruce Lee viral Campaign for Nokia.
Imagine selling out all on-order stock in 5 days. That's what this did for Nokia China.
Soon, nightfall struck, and the JWT Manila Tribe showed the Passion Patrol cats how we end the week in our neck of the woods.
Championing Pinoy Hospitality, Dave and Jos took the Passion contingent out on a night they won’t soon forget. First up was a fancy dinner at Lolo Dad’s in Ayala which would prove to be the last "dignified" setting for the week. Shortly after, they found themselves at Attica Bar in A-Venue for a very unique experience.
Rockeoke, in case you're not hip to the Pinoy scene, is essentially performance karaoke with a live Rock Band. Dave got the ball rolling by belting out The Cure's Friday I'm In Love .
Words alone won’t do the revelry justice. (Incidentally, there are photos and videos floating about, so beware!) Suffice it to say, the night saw Ramsey, Ma Yan and Guan live out their rockstar fantasies to the musical stylings of the Johnnies. The trio even joined together to give us their rendition of Hard Day’s Night.
Not to be outdone, Jos and the rest of the Manila crowd took their turns at the microphone. Art Director and rocker Bob Cruz even showcased his badass guitar skills when he jammed with the band and dished out a wicked solo.
The Johnnies capped the spectacle off with one last set that had everyone present singing their hearts out in unison (well, sort of in unison) to the tune of "Can’t Take My Eyes Off Of You" which can only be aptly described as very “GMA Supershow.”
Going great lengths to ensure that our visitors left with more than just additional Facebook contacts and tagged photos, Dave presented our colleagues with a uniquely Pinoy parting gift which featured a commemorative shirt designed by Katrina Encanto and a CD of Eraserheads hits compiled by Rachel Villanueva.
Huge Congratulations are due Dave Ferrer, Jos Ortega, Maggie Madayag, Rachel Villanueva, Ge Madriaga-Mapa, Ramon Alfonso, Cez Golez, Kara Bautista, Tricci Alonzo, Katrina Encanto, Robert Reños, Amay Ridera, Peter Espina, Jesse Caube, Tolits Torres, Niki Rojas, Diane Fernando, Tesscafé Jumawan, Bernard Dizon and everyone else who helped make it an unforgettable Passion Patrol Q1. As Dave noted in his email, thanks to everyone's efforts, our guests took home very good impressions of the Philippines and considered this "the best Passion ever!"
4.01.2009
Judgement Dave: Clio Awards 2009
Under his stewardship, JWT Manila has won quite a number of international and local awards for radio. In 2007, Dave and his team brought home the Philippines' first ever Cannes Gold Lion, for the celebrated Lotus Spa radio campaign.