Brief 1 Make Poverty History

Brief 1 Make Poverty History (MarApr 2005) The World's Toughest Briefs series got off to a flying start; the sheer volume and quality of entries clearly demonstrating that the brief had captured the imagination of Creatives from around the world. After much deliberation, the distinguished panel of judges awarded first prize to Gavin Gordon-Rogers and Gemma Butler, a senior Creative team from Agency Republic, London. Their Virtual Demonstration was part of a submission entitled, 'The Future's In Your Hands'. All the judges were struck by the originality and brilliance of the idea, and by the fact that it was both achievable and truly international. "A virtual demonstration could be a really big idea. It's very 'PR-able'. I don't think it's something we would have arrived at without this process". (Peter Souter - Creative Director of BBDO Worldwide and deputy chairman of AMV). Two runners up were also highly commended by the judges: Chris Baylis and Dilesh Lalloo for '1 Child Every 3 Seconds' and Michael Slack from Purple Circle for 'Stats The Fact'. A further ten ideas were commended by the Make Poverty History team. OpenAd.net, the FT and the Make Poverty History campaign were delighted with the response to this important and challenging brief. “
It's been an excellent experiment and I think we have some stuff that could really swing some people's minds. And every mind changed might just be a life saved. A huge thanks to everyone judging, everyone at OpenAd and at the FT.
(Richard Curtis writer, director and vice-chair of Comic Relief)
Virtual Demonstration When the concept of a virtual G8 protest rally was submitted in response to the Make Poverty History brief, it was clear that the idea was powerful enough to warrant wide exposure. The wheels were set in motion and g8rally.com became a reality, giving an online voice to supporters unable to join the Edinburgh rally in person. The Virtual Demonstration, designed to bring together as many people as possible using on-screen animated characters, was brought to life by three of the UK's leading digital marketing agencies. Agency Republic, AKQA and glue London teamed up with Comic Relief to produce this striking and original contribution to end world poverty. Supporters were able to represent themselves at the rally by creating their own character, writing a protest placard and emailing a G8 leader. The site also invited visitors to learn more about the G8 rally, find fellow protestors and invite others to join them, and take a tour of Edinburgh itself. Richard Curtis, Writer, Director and Vice-Chairman of Comic Relief said, "We have something here that could really swing some people's minds. At the time of Live Aid in 1985, no one had computers. The world has changed and now, through the net, it is possible for everyone, no matter where they are, to make their presence felt - to join the long walk to justice from a computer in Cincinnati! A brilliant idea." Peter Souter, Creative Director of BBDO Worldwide and Deputy Chairman of AMV added, "A virtual rally is a gem of a really big idea. It's very PR-able, very fun and very likely to help change the world." Winner Gavin Gordon-Rogers and Gemma Butler
Now the senior creative team at Agency Republic in London, Gavin and Gemma were formerly deputy creative directors at glue London. They have also worked as freelancers with McCann Erickson, TBWA and Karmarama. Runner up Chris Baylis and Dilesh Lalloo
Formerly Creative Communications Director at Profero UK, Chris is now a senior Creative at Agency Republic, London. Dilesh is senior Designer at Agency Republic. Before that he was a Designer at AKQA. Runner up Michael Slack
Michael is Managing Director of brand consultants Purple Circle, which he co-founded in 1991.