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Dubai: Passion, energy and enthusiasm filled the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre on Wednesday evening as the creators of the best advertisements in the Middle East and North Africa region took home over 100 trophies at the Dubai Lynx 2008 awards ceremony.
The Dubai Lynx Awards, dubbed the region's advertising Oscars, was held for the second time in Dubai. The event drew 1,600 guests from the advertising industry.
Out of 180 Dubai Lynx trophies awarded, the UAE won the most - 127 - followed by Qatar with 18 and Lebanon with 12. Egypt won seven awards, including two Grand Prix.
Print advertisements dominated the awards, with 45 winners followed by outdoor advertising with 40, direct with 28, new media with 24 and TV/cinema with 20. Interactive advertising won 15 awards, while integrated and radio commercials had four winners each.
The winners were picked from 2,023 advertisements from 17 countries and judged by 29 jury members from all over the world, including the UK, US, Australia, New Zealand, Sweden India, South Africa, Spain, Germany, Italy, Estonia, Poland, Singapore, Belgium, France and Romania.
"Yes, we came from many countries to judge the great work here. But I have to say we're gonna walk away having learned a huge lesson.
"The lesson is, the potential is here. The lesson is, great stuff is here," said Christophe Becker, who headed the TV/cinema, print, outdoor, radio and integrated juries.
Presented by the Cannes Lions, along with regional partners, the prestigious Dubai Lynx Awards capped the First Dubai Lynx International Advertising Festival, which was meant to create a networking platform and help raise the creative bar in the region.
With the advertising industry's creative talents coming together under one roof to celebrate their best work, it was not surprising to see a great deal of enthusiasm and energy during the ceremony.
Each award was greeted with the sound of party horns and screams from the crowd, creating an atmosphere quite different from the Cannes advertising awards in France.
"It's just been amazing tonight. In Europe, you don't get this lovely enthusiasm that you get here. It's very different. It's a lovely atmosphere. The crowd is enthusiastic and very happy. The winners truly deserve the awards," said Amanda Benfell, public relations and press manager of Dubai International Advertising Festival.
"What excites me tonight is to see a lot of young talent in the crowd. There's so much passion and enthusiasm. I salute you for being passionate and enthusiastic. I hope you keep this industry alive always," said The Holding Group president and chief executive officer Joseph Ghossoub, who was named advertising person of the year.
The most coveted grand prix award for the print category went to FP7 Doha. Leo Burnett Cairo won the grand prix for TV/Cinema, while Bates Pangulf Dubai got the grand prix for direct advertising and the first media grand prix went to JWT Cairo.
JWT Dubai went home with the Agency of the Year trophy with. FP7 Doha came in second, followed by Fortune Promoseven Dubai.
The winners of the First Dubai Lynx Young Creatives competition were the MediaOne team, Abdul Shafeeq and Greeshma Nair from the UAE.
Click here for a full list of the winners.
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