Three agencies from the Middle East among White Square 2024 winners
Posted on 2024 Jun,11  | By ArabAd's staff


White Square International Festival of Creativity unveils winners of its 2024 edition.

1115 entries from more than 35 countries of Europe, North and Latin America, MENA region, Asia, China and others took part in the contest program of the Festival.

White Square 2024 entries were evaluated by six line-ups of the international jury, represented by internationally recognized professionals in the field of creativity and communications, winners of numerous awards, as well as experienced jury members of prestigious international festivals in the field of creativity and efficiency all over the world.

The Festival highly favors creative ideas that share the principles of socially responsible marketing, peacefulness and universal human values, demonstrates the best ideas realized by agencies and brands, including ideas that contribute to the development of the industry and change the world for the better.

So it was no surprise to see The Grand Prix of the Festival go to agency Bruketa&Žinić&Grey, Croatia for ‘a soup to remember’ campaign and to Ogilvy Bangkok, Thailand for ‘not very sweet’ campaign.

The creative idea of ‘a soup to remember’ was to promote and preserve the cultural heritage of Međimurje, Croatia, through a unique and engaging approach that resonates with the local community. The agency utilized alphabet soup pasta as a creative product and created a collection of five books, each containing a small package of pasta with an exact number of letters for one song represented in the book.

This creative idea celebrates culture and encourages intergenerational knowledge transfer by making it engaging for younger generations to learn about their heritage.

The campaign goal was to declare Međimurska Popevka Day by the local government, and we succeeded. The collaboration with public figures and numerous activities helped making a connection with the target audience, and the unique approach helped in reaching the reason why we created this campaign: to preserve the cultural heritage of Međimurje, but in an organic way, by making generations spend time together and collaborate.

The "Not Very Sweet" campaign unveils how the underdog brand 'Delight' shapes a purpose-driven narrative in the dominated Cultured Yogurt landscape, leveraging the Thai cultural insight that "True Care Doesn't Sugar-Coat.”

Reflecting the Thai cultural nuances where genuine care is expressed plainly in closer relationships, the campaign captures the essence that, without sweet talks, lies a profound sense of care, fostering the best in others. The creative idea, “Not Very Sweet but Full of Love,” aligns with this cultural insight and Delight's hero product, boasting probiotic care with only 0.1% sugar.

The film features relatable characters of friends and family communicating in a blunt, seemingly indifferent tone, initially creating an impression of carelessness. However, their words carry genuine care and love. While the exaggeration, yet surprising ending truly illustrates the depths one goes to express care for another – a clever usage of Thai humor that touches the laugh and the heart.

The Grand Prix was determined by the Grand Jury, represented by the Chairmen of all the main jury line-ups.

From the Middle East, Webedia agency in Saudi Arabia won 3 bronzes for Museum of Extinct Mobility campaign.

Mullenlowe MENA, took a gold, 3 silver and a bronze for Fixing the bAIs respectively in Creative data, in Branded tech and innovation/Use of Ai, in Gender Equality and in Nonprofit/charity.

Phenomena Creative Boutique, Lebanon won a bronze for Hon_My_Home in Film and a bronze for Despite All Challenges in self-promo

The judging level of the Festival met the highest international standards of the communications industry, a high bar for the criteria and selection of the entries was set, while a high level of competition and the limited number of the winners make the Festival awards even more valuable and desirable for the participants.

The jury and the organizing committee of the Festival congratulate the winners; they hope that the ideas awarded at White Square Festival 2024 will become a source of inspiration for development and innovations in the creative industry!