Havas London has won Global’s Look Ahead contest by answering the brief for positive and eye-catching out-of-home ad ideas with a campaign demonstrating how virtual reality can help Alzheimer’s sufferers.
The Look Ahead competition was launched by media and entertainment group Global in partnership with Contagious and Transport for London (TfL) in September, and asked entrants to submit a creative concept (on behalf of a client or brand) that answered the following brief:
The launch of the Elizabeth line and the opening of the Bond Street Elizabeth line station are occasions that deserve to be marked with outstanding creativity. And at a time when many people feel afraid about the future, we’re looking for ideas that will inspire people to look ahead.
The winner of the competition would get their idea produced and placed on 15 ‘ribbons’ - Global’s video screens which run the length of the escalators at London Underground stations – including those on the new Elizabeth line.
Anto Chioccarelli, creative solutions partnerships director at Global, and Paul Kemp-Robertson, Contagious’ co-founder, announced the winner of the competition at the Most Contagious event in London on 24 November in front of an adland audience.
Expanding on the judging process for the competition, Kemp-Robertson told the audience that, ‘For this landmark opportunity, we assembled a top-class jury, featuring a mix of clients and agency folk.’
Anto Chioccarelli then explained the criteria that the judges used to select the winner. These were ‘attention’, or how creative and impactful the idea was, ‘media specific’, or how well the entry used ribbon screens to bring the creative idea to life, and finally ‘brand’, or how appropriate is the idea was to the brand and the product or services being advertised.
Five entries were shortlisted in total, but Havas London won the day with its idea to turn the ribbon screens into windows into the past, making it seem as though people were riding the escalators alongside commuters and travellers from the 1960s (dressed in the fashion from the period and reading newspapers of the era). The campaign was created to promote The Wayback, a series of virtual reality films that comfort sufferers of dementia and Alzheimer’s by immersing them in scenes that remind them of their younger days.
The Brooklyn Brothers was the competition runner-up with its The Long Destination idea, promoting travel website Omio. The campaign aimed to raise a smile from passing commuters and make full use of ribbon screens by encouraging people to visit places in the UK that have such long names they’d run the entire length of the escalator.
As the winner of the Look Ahead competition, Havas London will see its idea produced and broadcast on ribbon screens on the London Underground early next year.
Anto Chioccarelli described Havas London’s entry as a’ powerful, optimistic, evocative idea, taking people with dementia and their carers back to scenes from decades ago’.
Kemp-Robertson was also on hand to add some of the judges’ choice quotes about the worthy winner.
One said that it ‘reimagines the potential of the medium’, another said that it ‘champions the new and adds genuine value in a wider context – the kind of idea people are likely to share after they’ve seen it’.
Another judge commented that ‘you can create an ad that sits within a format, or you can create a deeper experience that lives beyond it’, and another described it as ‘brimming with contextual potential – the ability to coincide the creative content with cultural dates and social moments.’
Chris Reader, Head of Commercial Media at TfL, said: ‘It was a pleasure to be part of the team judging the excellent entries in the competition and to see Havas take first place.
Their ideas show how creatively partners can use our advertising estate to be more inclusive and innovative. We're looking forward to seeing their adverts proudly up across our network.’
Anto Chioccarelli wrapped things up in suitably thoughtful style: ‘A massive thanks to the amazing team at Contagious and the jury, and all the people at Global and TfL that have been involved on this fantastic journey that is only the start of our mission to play a role in driving more creativity, innovation and meaningful work that moves people.’
