SCAD ads nab SCADDY Awards
After months of deliberation and crossed fingers, the winners of the seventh annual SCADDY Awards were announced and celebrated last Friday night at the Arnold Hall Auditorium.
Students’ works were judged by a series of distinguished panelists, and the finalists’ works were exhibited at the Gutstein Gallery last January 4-27. In his opening remarks, Luke Sullivan, the chairman of the advertising department, praised the students chosen, calling them “the best of the best.”
Those present in the audience were Draftclub, Razorfish and B&H Photography, who served as the official sponsors of the show as well as those who gave grants for the special awards.
Recipients of those special awards and grants were Giang Nguyen, who won the category of “Best Integrated Branding,” and Nurullah Keli for “Best Craftsmanship.” Sara Collins and Wesley Harsch were presented the award for “Best Use of Social Media” and the $3000 grant by Valerie Carlson, the vice president creative of Razorfish.
Luke Bailey, the executive vice president and executive creative director of DraftFCB New York, presented the “Best in Show” award and a $5000 prize to Huiffen Fu. Before presenting the award, Bailey shared that he was lucky enough to be given a tour of the college and found the talent and facilities “absolutely mesmerizing.”
Bailey also spoke of how fortunate students are, being surrounded by “so many imaginative minds,” a privilege which is not experienced after graduation. He urged the students to make the most of their stay here at the university, and to “dig deep and push hard,” because one great idea could change the direction of an advertisement, a brand, and even a student’s life.
After the awards, Fu described the feeling of winning “Best in Show” as “definitely awesome and unexpected.” She encouraged students to work without expecting something in return, because the rewards will “come naturally,” and to take every opportunity to submit their work. Fu also said that passion was an important factor in helping her win “Best in Show.”
When asked about the effect the SCADDY’s had on the school, Sullivan explained that it was first and foremost for the students, saying that this was their “first shot” at understanding excellence. He added that it was one thing for the students’ work to be critiqued in class, and another thing for their work to be critiqued by strangers.
He summed up the awards by describing them as a testament to the talent and hard work of the students, professors and staff.
