The M-Net Vuka! 2010 finalists which will be screened on M-Net and certain DStv channels from January 2011 are:
Professionals:
Selinah
(Best Commercial Overall and winner for Best Direction, Best Concept, Best Script, Best Original Music and Best Editing)
Charity: Topsy Foundation
Production Company: Egg Films
Advertising Agency: Ogilvy JHB
Production Co: Kerry Hosford, Rozanne Rocha-Gray
Agency Producer: Lisa Wides, Debbie Dannheisser
Director: Kim Geldenhuys
Cinematographer: Kim Geldenhuys
Editor: Kobus Loots — Upstairs Post Production
Sound: Leah Siegel — Human
Creative Directors: Fran Luckin, Gerry Human, Bridget Johnson
Copywriter: Stephanie Van Niekerk
Art Directors: Videtse Kay, Robyn Bergmann
Selinah is a powerful and moving tribute to the restorative effects of treating the HIV/Aids virus with anti-retroviral (ARV) medication. It is the true story of Selinah, an Aids sufferer who experiences the ravaging effects of her disease being reversed over a period of 90 days through the administration of antiretrovirals (ARVs). Each day of her recovery was documented by the film crew, who witnessed Selinah’s incredible metamorphosis over the three month period first hand. The ad also won a Gold Film Lion at the Cannes International Advertising Festival 2010. The ad agency responsible, Ogilvy Johannesburg, has supported the Topsy Foundation, for the past 10 years. Says M-Net Vuka! judge Gary King: “It is a genius idea. It is beautifully executed and it is real and honest.”
Luthuli Beanie, Slovo Divas and Tambo Roundhouse
(Special mention in Best Concept Category)
Charity: Apartheid Museum
Advertising Agency: TBWA Hunt Lascaris
Producer: Ingrid Shellard
Director: Chloe Coetsee
Sound: Louis Enslin
Editor: Chloe Coetsee
Creative Directors: Nicholas Hulley, Amanda Horwitz
Copywriters: Ruby Obeng-Tuffoh
Art Directors: Marvin Zwambila, Nadja Lossgott
Sixteen years ago, the young people of South Africa lived for a cause bigger than themselves — freedom. Sixteen years later, it’s a different story. The youth seem more concerned about the latest gossip on celebrities like Lady Gaga, Britney and Rihanna than they are about knowing even some of the basic details of South Africa’s struggle heroes such as Oliver Tambo, Albert Luthuli and Joe Slovo. The concept for the campaign was inspired by the card game, 30 Seconds, and soon demonstrated just how little young South Africans know about their past. TBWA Hunt Lascaris felt strongly that South Africa has come too far as a nation to negate the invaluable contributions these men and women made and decided to make this PSA for the Apartheid Museum which exists as a monument to the fall of apartheid and chronicles an ugly history we may learn to forgive, but in so doing, should never forget.
Jumbled
Charity: Avril Elizabeth Home
Production Company: Bouffant
Advertising Agency: JWT
Production Co: Chanelle Critchfield
Agency Producer: Silke Gehring
Director: Chloe Coetsee
Cinematographer: Rob Wilson
Editor: Daniel Mitchell
Sound: Jo Darling-Risi
Creative Directors: Ben Du Plessis, Steve Clayton
Copywriters: Graham Finnemore, Nare Mokgotho
The clever use of jumbled spelling on placards clearly brings across the message that even if people are different, they should be valued. Says
creative director Steve Clayton: “It tells the story in a very real way. No dramatic or creative tweaks were needed for the viewer to get the message and to empathise with it. Watching the commercial come together was an amazing display of business people behaving like human beings. Every single thought and hour spent, right down to the music by Kimya Dawson in the U.S, was donated. The more people understood the plight of the Avril Elizabeth Home the more they gave.”
Neighbours
Charity: POWA
Production Company: Frieze Films
Production Co: Jo Barber
Agency Producer: Debbie Dannheisser
Director: Jonty Fine
Cinematographer: Jonty Fine
Editor: Jonty Fine
Soundtrack: Frequency
Creative Director: Fran Luckin
Art Directors: Renier Zandberg, Robyn Bergmann
Copywriters: Taryn Sher, Catherine Conradie
Frieze Films undertook a real experiment in a townhouse complex in Johannesburg — no actors were used and nothing was staged. Drums were played which soon had neighbours banging on the door and complaining about the unacceptable noise levels. However, when a tape of a woman being abused by her partner was played at high volume, there was no reaction from the surrounding community. Says Taryn Sher: “It spoke to a human truth. We are willing to get involved when our neighbours make a noise, but not when domestic violence is involved. One thousand two hundred women are killed annually by their spouses in South Africa. We believe the problem is not just about a few people beating their wives, but rather an apathetic society.” The video for POWA touched a chord and was passed around virally, receiving 450 000 hits on YouTube in the first few weeks alone. Ogilvy’s Robyn Bergmann said POWA had given the agency a “brief to create awareness of the fact that violence happens everywhere, and it is rampant because we, as a community, accept it.” “We had prepared ourselves for a visit from the police or private security company. But after half an hour of excruciating noises, we still had no response,” she said. “According to POWA, the need to keep up appearances in suburbia makes the denial even more extreme.”
Contenders:
Drive Alive (Martin, Gary and Tracy)
Best Commercial Overall and winner for Best Direction, Best Concept and Best Script)
Production Company: Bouffant
Advertising Agency: Metropolitan
Republic
Producer: Boris Vossgater, Bryony Webster
Director: Dean Blumberg
Cinematographer: Tom Marais
Editor: Michael Kolbe
Creative Director: Avital Pinchevsky
Copywriters: Philippa Heal
Copywriter/Art Director: Tammy
Retter
Ass. Art Director: David Everson
Sound: Theo Potgieter
A hard-hitting campaign where three people are looking for their ideal mate, only for the viewer to
discover that they are talking about someone who has been lost in a car accident. Says copywriter Philippa Heal: “The concept came from the thought that when one loses a loved one in an accident, one loses an individual who cannot be replaced. One might meet someone else, but whoever that may be will never have the exact characteristics of the person that they lost. We chose to highlight very personal and specific details in order to emphasise the idea of being an irreplaceable individual to people who love you. Drive Alive is in dire need of funding and will be forced to close down without help. To help keep this organisation afloat please visit www.drivealive.org.za and contact Moira Winslow.”
All Worthwhile Things Take Time
Charity: GreenPop
Production Company: Open Window Productions
Producer: Mathilda Mennen
Director: Jotam Schoeman
Editor: Jotam Schoeman
Soundtrack: Jotam Schoeman
Creative Director: Jotam Schoeman
Copywriter: Jotam Schoeman
Greenpop is planting trees in undergreened areas in Cape Town. The animated commercial shows how a tree will survive longer than a human being. Says Jotam Schoeman: “The concept came from my realisation of the timeless truth that through committed care good things will come.” So why did he choose this particular charity? “Greenpop is doing amazing work and is run by the same people that organise A Night of a Thousand Drawings. I draw. And my PSA is drawn. We are like minded. The medium in which it is executed stands as an example of the message that all worthwhile things take time. 2D animation is a dying art that takes a lot of patience and committed care.”
Talk
Charity: FAMSA
Production Company: Orange Films
Producer: Vanessa Alsop
Director: James Westcott
Cinematographer: Craig Alsop
Editor: Josh Borrill
Soundtrack: Nic Turton
A couple are arguing — however, their voices are those of young children involved in a playground brawl. Says director James Westcott: “People act differently when they don’t know that they’re being watched. I feel often we see children and adults in such a different light, living in different worlds. What I think makes this story unique is it proposes that children often have to deal with adult problems and adults deal with their problems like children. A harsh observation perhaps, but the irony is effective in communicating the message.”
Newcomers:
Jesuit Refugee Service
(Overall Best Commercial and winner for Best Script, Best Editing and Best Sound Design/Original music. Co-winner in the Best Animation Category.)
Charity: Jesuit Refugee Service
Educational Institution: University of Pretoria
Producers/Directors: Mornè Venter, Amy van Vuuren, Karen Meyer, Micaela Reeves
Cinematographers: Mornè Venter, Amy van Vuuren, Karen Meyer, Micaela Reeves
Editors: Mornè Venter, Amy van Vuuren, Karen Meyer, Micaela Reeves
Sound: Kyle Mc Intyre
Copywriters/Creative Directors: Mornè Venter, Amy van Vuuren, Karen Meyer, Micaela Reeves
The students at the University of Pretoria were briefed on the Vuka! Awards as part of a university project. Immediately, one of the group came up with the idea of doing a PSA for the Jesuit Refugee Service and decided to focus on the refugee’s point of view, instead of through the usual South African’s point of view. They decided to go with animation to illustrate the difference between an illegal immigrant and a refugee. Says Awards Organisor Desiree Markgraaff “This is a very sophisticated piece of work, not just in the animation, but conceptually and in its execution. Great care was taken in the sound design. This young team are definitly to be watched, we suspect they will pop up again soon in the professional category.”
Childline
(Special mention in the Best Concept Category)
Charity: Childline
Educational Institution: University of Pretoria
Producers/Directors: Stephanie Roos, Cerryn Jade Morley, Bianca Vosloo
Cinematographers: Stephanie Roos, Cerryn Jade Morley, Bianca Vosloo
Editor: Ashleigh Frost
Sound: Michael du Plooy
Creative Directors: Stephanie Roos, Cerryn Jade Morley, Bianca Vosloo
Animation: Stephanie Roos, Cerryn Jade Morley, Ashleigh Frost, Bianca Vosloo
Copywriter: Cerryn Jade Morley
The students at the University of Pretoria decided to focus on children’s rights as a point of departure for this PSA. Children often draw pictures of what their lives consist of. The commercial shows a child drawing a picture of the typical things that would fulfill all their rights. However, at the end of the commercial the child says: “But I am not every child!” The little boy used in the commercial was adopted as a baby into a loving family. It is significant that he is able to draw a picture of a happy life because his life could have turned out differently.
Mia
(Best Concept winner)
Charity: Missing Children SA
Educational Institution: Vega the
Brand Communication School
Producers: Danielle de Bruyn, Andrea Ferreira, Christy Kiggan, Marish Naidoo, Aamlia Rasool, Taskeen Limalia, Nokwanda Nzimande
Director: Andrea Ferreria
Cinematographer: Brent Freeman
Editors: Danielle de Bruyn, Andrea Ferreira, Christy Kiggan,
Soundtrack: The Ranks (Neil du Plessis, Matthew Jones, Brett Jones)
Creative Director: Andrea Ferreira
Copywriter: Danielle de Bruyn
Says copywriter Danielle de Bruyn: “I had been particularly interested in a case of a girl called Morgan Harrington who went missing in the US
and was reading up about it on the net. I realised it must be worse, in many instances, for your child to go missing, rather than to know that your child is dead. This thought inspired the concept.” Most of the members of Missing Children SA are volunteers who dedicate their time and resources to recover missing children.
Best Friends
Charity: TEARS
Educational Institution: City Varsity School of Media & Creative Arts JHB
Producers: Colin Pegon, Michel Dujardin
Director: Colin Pegon
Cinematographer: Casper Erasmus
Editor: Darren Kerr
Sound: Elizabeth Baaties, Enzo Jantjies
Creative Director: Colin Pegon
The idea behind this PSA was a simple message that a pet is a friend and should be treated with the same respect and care as any human friend. The twist on the line “A dog is man’s best friend” soon becomes obvious. Creative director Colin Pegon made the decision from the outset that the commercial would not feature a single animal rather using a human to play a metaphorical dog: “Hopefully the PSA will make people think of how they treat their pets and they will ask themselves “Would I treat him/her like that if he/she was a human?”
Seeds Of Change
(Special mention in the Best Animation Category)
Charity: Heifer International
Educational Institution: Vega the Brand Communication School
Producers/Directors: Roxanne Starr, Kevin Christie, Sharleen Hollick, Peter Phillips, Kim Smith, Inez Pringle, Patrick George, Senzo Xulu
Editors: Roxanne Starr, Kevin Christie, Sharleen Hollick, Peter Phillips, Kim Smith, Inez Pringle, Patrick George, Senzo Xulu
Sound: Peter Phillips
Copywriters/Creative Directors: Roxanne Starr, Kevin Christie, Sharleen Hollick, Peter Phillips, Kim Smith, Inez Pringle, Patrick George, Senzo Xulu
Animation: Senzo Xulu
A delightful use of animation and rhyme gets the message across that “if you give man milk you feed him for a day but if you give him a cow you pave a whole new way”. It demonstrates the positive knock-on effects that can come from a simple action — when people are encouraged
to “donate change”. Says Inez Pringle: ‘The concept derives from the goal of the Heifer Foundation and how they go about bringing change, growth and sustainability in communities. We chose this charity in order to make people more aware of them as they are not one of the most well-known and therefore receive less attention. What makes our commercial special is the simple animation style that delivers a clear message through a fun storyline that can be enjoyed by all.”
Condoms Myths and Facts
(Special Mention in the M-Net Cares Rising Star Category)
Charity: Condom Awareness
Educational Institution: University of JHB
Producer/Director: Thapelo Aloysius Keetile
Editor: Thapelo Aloysius Keetile
Sound: Anthony Sithole
Animation: Thapelo Aloys ius Keetile
Creative Director: Thapelo Aloysius Keetile
There are many myths and misnomers about condoms and how to use them which this straight-talking ad aims to correct. Says Thapelo Keetile: “People should focus on protecting themselves from HIV/Aids instead of finding excuses not to. I chose a fun way of communicating the message because to inform people about something serious doesn’t have to be so serious all the time. Hopefully, viewers will enjoy the visuals I used to communicate the theme.”
Hope
(Co-winner in the Best Animation Category)
Charity: Animal Anti Cruelty League
Educational Institution: Open Window School of Visual Communication
Producer: Nic Mulder
Director: Karien Mulder
Cinematographer: Karien Mulder
Editor: Karien Mulder
Sound: Karien Mulder — Jamendo.com (free music)
Copywriter: Karien Mulder
Animation: Karien Mulder
Creative Director: Karien Mulder
Karien Mulder’s animated concept about a young girl and her magic balloon originated after a visit to an elephant sanctuary where a young elephant was rescued from being sent off to a circus: “Thanks to the work done by organisations such as the Animal Anti Cruelty League, animals are given a chance for a better future.”
Mantlwane
(Winner of the M-Net Cares Rising Star Award)
Charity: People Opposing Woman Abuse
Educational Institution: Big Fish
School of Digital Filmmaking
Producer: Lehlohonolo Mokoena
Director: Sanele Makhubu
Cinematographer: Paul Zisiwe
Editor: Sanele Makhubu
Sound: Sanele Makhubu
Creative Director: Sanele Makhubu
This thought provoking and tough ad explores the consequences of children living in homes with alcoholic parents and/or adults and the resultant abuse on the minds of children. Says creative director Sanele Makhubu: “It’s not just a game is our tag line. The children are playing out the true horrors which often happen in the main house when the father returns from his daily binges. They become a representational cast of
the trauma inflicted on their young psyches.”
Compassion Extends Beyond Borders
(Winner in the Best Direction and Best Cinematography Categories)
Charity: Peace Action
Producer: Dewald Vorster
Director: Jan Hendrik Burger
Cinematographer: Jan Hendrik Burger
Editor: Jan Hendrik Burger
Sound: Dewald Vorster
Creative Director: Dewald Vorster
Copywriter: Dewald Vorster
Dewald Vorster and Jan Hendrik Burger cleverly used the public artwork in Newtown in Joburg’s CBD as a metaphor for the humanitarian
ideal of equality and then set about making a moving PSA for Peace Action which has programmes aimed at helping the victims of xenophobia. Says Dewald: “The public artwork in Newtown serves as a visual record of our coexistence against various cultural backgrounds within a contemporary space. Art became a utility, a vehicle towards discovering the metaphor we sought. We simply had to solve our own grappling with the terms ’empathy’ and ‘compassion’. It was clear that an attempt at outreach would extend across physical borders, faith, and culture.”