Binh Vu and Uy Le of Lowe Vietnam Rate their Adfest Experience

It was not only our first time in Thailand, it was also our first experience at a regional awards show. Along with 12 other teams, aged under 28, from various cities across Asia, we had the chance to see and experience many great works at the festival.

Within the workshops from Dentsu Aegis Network, we learned about new directions on the advertising scene. It is no longer enough to disrupt, we must innovate the human experience. For us, this was one of the biggest thought starters.

As for the competition, the brief completely caught us by surprise. But it turned out to be very relevant to young creatives as well. Our main task was to create a direct digital campaign to capture one high-profile, yet inaccessible Mrs. ECD, and get our dream job.

Instead of interrupting the ECD’s life with our portfolio, we wanted to showcase our skills with a real and honest Kickstarter project. We aimed to both provide entertainment and disrupt, with a result that could be measured. To spread the word, we used different free media channels available online such as Urban Dictionary, Craiglist, and Buzzfeed.

It was incredible to see all the different fresh perspectives from other teams. The competition was very cooperative and friendly, and everyone worked hard for the ideas they really believed in.

Another highlight was the Adfest Award show, displaying all the best works in the region. At Adfest, every single piece of work is showcased, so we got access to all of the different submissions. We were not only impressed by the different crazy and innovative ideas, but also by the level of craft and commitment.

It was clear that in the state of booming technology advances, most of the works were inclined to explore these digital possibilities. Creativity is no longer just a combination of art and copy, but now a synthesis of many different disciplines.

In the end our sisters at Lowe Philippines won the competition for Manila. But overall, our experience at Adfest did not change because of this! Our experience can be summarised in two words: inspiration and aspiration. We found a whole new world of inspiration that made us want to do even better works, and we aspire to be among those great people who make a name for themselves someday.