DDB CREATIVE DUO TO CHAIR CROWBAR 2012

Singapore, 02 Mar 2012 – Thomas Yang, Creative Director and Joji Jacob, Group Executive Creative Director, from DDB Singapore will take the helm for Crowbar Festival 2012, an annual industry organised student event celebrating and recognising the cream of the crop amongst young creative talents.

With an impressive portfolio between them, Yang and Jacob bring a wealth of industry experience and accolades to Crowbar. After breaking into the advertising scene as Best New Art Director at the Singapore Creative Circle Awards in 1998, Yang has gone on to bag over 300 regional and international awards at major shows such as D&AD, The One Show, Cannes, Clio, AdFest and The Spikes. Over the course of his career in DDB Singapore, he was also involved in creating award-winning at Cannes, D&AD, the One Show, Effies, Spikes Asia, AdFest, SPH Ink Awards and the Creative Circle Awards, earning him the recognition being named one of the top 10 highest ranked creative director in Cannes.

Jacob made his mark recently by receiving the honour of being named Singapore’s most influential Creative Director and South East Asia’s Person of the Year at the Campaign Awards in 2011. In both years under his charge since 2010, he has also been instrumental in seeing the DDB group clinch more Cannes Lions than any other agency in Singapore for two years in a row.

No strangers to Crowbar, both creatives have been actively involved in the 2011 edition with Yang appointed as the Head Judge in the Advertising jury and Jacob featured as a guest speaker at the Crowbar Seminar. They will also be complemented by a team of industry practitioners across the five disciplines of Advertising, Design, Photography, Interactive and Film who will serve as Heads of Jury, inclusive of Ang Sheng Jin from Grey Singapore, Roy Poh from A Beautiful Design, Jing Quek from Super Studio, Melvin Mak from Rushes and Steven Jodistiro from iris Worldwide.

Both firm believers of the development and nurturing of new talent, the duo agrees that an injection of fresh blood is vital for creative continuity. But, in order for this to happen, they point out that students must possess tenacity, passion and the drive to succeed, qualities which Crowbar helps to inculcate, to set foot into the creative industry. “In this day and age, only the brightest stand out from the pack, a fact that holds true for the creative industry as well. With tighter resources and fierce competition, to be recognised and acknowledged as the best out there is the only way to get noticed by potential employers. The Crowbars set the stage for aspiring creative students to unleash their talent and pit their skills against their peers whilst getting their works critiqued by industry professionals in order to open new doors for them in their careers,” Yang and Jacob mentioned.

Since its inception in 2001, Crowbar is an annual platform for emerging young creatives to showcase their best works. Judged by leading creative practitioners across the five disciplines of Advertising, Design, Photography, Interactive and Film, it has gained regional, and international, recognition in recent years. In 2011, Crowbar received a record number of 1,249 entries, an increase of 25% as compared to the previous year, from 20 tertiary institutions around the island and overseas from countries such as Malaysia, New Zealand and China.

About the Association of Accredited Advertising Agents Singapore (4As)

The Association of Accredited Advertising Agents Singapore was founded in 1948. Better known as the 4As, this non-profit trade association represents advertising and marketing communications practitioners, agencies and related businesses in Singapore. The 4As works in close co-operation with other related trade associations, schools and government bodies to nurture talent and to improve the stature and prominence of the advertising and marketing communications industry. Among the key events organized and promoted by the 4As are the Singapore Creative Circle Awards or the Gong Show; the Students Creative Awards, commonly known as The Crowbars; and the Singapore Media Awards.

For media queries, please contact:

Adam Rahman

Association of Accredited Advertising Agents Singapore

Tel : +65 6836 0600 Mobile: +65 91076755

Email: adamr@4as.org.sg