New York Festivals Torch Awards for Young Creative Talent Announces 2016’s Finalist Teams

Creativity, Festivals & Awards

New York Festivals Torch Awards announced the 2016 Finalist Teams who will compete in the Inclusive Design Challenge taking place in New York City on May 18th. The Finalist Teams, comprised of 18-27-year old creatives from around the globe, will begin the day fine-tuning their work during an intensive work session with their mentor, a member of the New York Festivals Executive Jury, who will help them polish their pitch.

Finalist Teams will each have 10 minutes to present their idea to an exclusive jury panel, including representatives from The Institute for Human Centered Design (IHCD) and members of NYF’s 2016 Executive Jury. The 2016 Grand-Winning Team will be announced live from stage on May 19th at the 2016 New York Show during the awards ceremony in the Rose Theater at Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Frederick P. Rose Hall.

The 2016 Torch Award Finalist Teams and Mentors:

Team Arigatos – Japan / South Korea

Yuki Abe – Copywriter, Dentsu Japan / Yuto Fujita – Planner, Dentsu Japan / Doh Kim – Art Director, Cheil Worldwide South Korea / Marina Kobayashi – Creative Planer, Dentsu Japan

Mentor: Valerie Cheng, Head of Creative Shop Southeast Asia, Facebook – Singapore

TEAM ONGAESHI – Japan

Shoya Miyashita – Planner, Dentsu / Chika Otaka – Planner, Dentsu / Anna Saito – Art Director, Dentsu / Yuriko Yokouchi – Planner, Dentsu

Mentor: Lisa Bennett, Chief Creative Officer, TM Advertising – USA

TEAM OWLS – USA

Summer Arrowood – Product Design student, Otis College of Art and Design / Alexandra Felix – Product Design student, Otis College of Art and Design / Mellanie Urquiza – Product Design student, Otis College of Art and Design

Mentor: Judy John, Chief Executive Officer/Chief Creative Officer, Leo Burnett Toronto – Canada

TEAM SPACE BAR – The Philippines

Jamie Cabatit – Art Director, TBWA/SantiagoMangadaPuno / Samantha Nicola Dedel – Art Director, TBWA/SantiagoMangadaPuno / Greg Hernandez – Copywriter, TBWA/SantiagoMangadaPuno / Denise Nicole Oyog – Copywriter, TBWA/SantiagoMangadaPuno

Mentor: Frank Bodin, Chairman & Chief Creative Officer, Havas Worldwide – Switzerland

TEAM THE BEST– USA

Sheuefang Lee – Art Director, BBDO / Christopher Vega – Copywriter, BBDO

Mentor: Josy Paul, Chairman & Chief Creative Officer, BBDO – India

New York Festivals launched the Torch Awards in 2014 to champion young creative talent. The competition encourages creatives from the ages of 18-25 to take part in a unique competition that explores a creative challenge and offers mentor training on how to pitch their idea.

For the 2016 Torch Awards, New York Festivals® partnered with The Institute for Human Centered Design (IHCD). IHCD is dedicated to enhancing the experiences of people of all ages and abilities through excellence in design.

Finalists in this year’s Inclusive Design Challenge will present their creative concept for a digital media showcase that presents the inclusive design progress and success stories. The showcase will become a permanent fixture in their showroom at the IHCD headquarters in Boston, Massachusetts.

Torch Awards Jury members will determine the Grand-Winning Team based on the following criteria: relevance to and understanding of IHCD brand and mission; a clear demonstration of campaign goals and strategy; adherence to the brief, including scope and budgets; and creative idea.

New York Festivald created the Torch Awards as an expression of our commitment to the development and promotion of the next generation of creative talent. We’ve harnessed the power, knowledge, and experience of our World’s Best Advertising Executive Jury to not only promote the mission of an important nonprofit organization, but also to help young creatives learn some of the most difficult exercises in the advertising industry.