Get Spiked!

“What’s so special about Spikes, you ask? Quite simply…. You have to experience it to know it. Unlike the more sprawling, leisurely pace of Adfest, Spikes like the host city itself is tight, fast paced and professional. Traditionally held at Suntec Singapore a venue that boasts first class facilities in the heart of Singapore’s Business District, Spikes proudly hosts workshops conducted by prominent industry leaders from around the world. One is also privy to an exhibition displaying the best creative work in Asia Pacific and some winning work from Cannes.

Spikes is not without its fair share of fun which includes after dark networking where leading agencies open their doors to an evening of fun, and of course there is the Awards After Party.

By September when work has surely taken its toll, what better way to recharge your batteries than with Spikes Asia, a real celebration of regional creativity.I sure hope I’ll see you there “

Laila Gunasekera Martenstyn
Vice President
Grant McCann Erickson.

Spikes Asia was an incredible overall experience as I learnt the future trends of advertising. I networked with multicultural prestigious creatives and as a designer exploring a different country truly contributed to enhancing my creativity further. The exposure I gained can be very applicable to this creative journey as The Cheil Creative Academy shared some amazing insights on the Samsung campaigns, I was amazed at the backstage of good advertising. This experience was a life changing one for me meeting all these creatives was indeed super exciting as each person brought with them something uniquely creative to the whole experience making it a memorable one hence I’m forever grateful to have received this opportunity by representing Sri Lanka.

“So, I got to chat with the Head of PR for Ogilvy & Mather in the U.S, the Chief Creative Officer of DigitasLB in London and the God Father of Creative Radio Advertising, all in one afternoon. Google’s Tom Uglow ran me through Project Loon, Eric Solomon – YouTube’s Global Head of Insights & Strategy – told me the secrets to surviving in a fan-led world, Steven van der Kruit – world-renowned trend hunter and photographer – enlightened me as to how you recognize the signs of an emerging trend, over a Beer and F1 Legend Jackie Stewart shared some seminal words of wisdom about thriving as the underdog.The young Leo Burnett Team beat out teams from around the region to win the Gold in the Integrated Competition and we won 02 Silvers and 01 Bronze at the Awards Ceremony in the Grand Theatre at the Marina Bay Sands, before going to the After Party at Avalon. My recollection of the evening from that point on, for some strange reason, gets a little blurry… Two words to describe Spikes Asia 2013 -‘EPIC’.”

Marsh Dodanwela
Director Digital Media
Leo Burnett Solutions Inc.
2013.

The young rising stars of communications have always played a central role to the creative spirit of Spikes Asia, representing as they do the future innovators and award winners of the industry. Therefore opportunities to further develop themselves, the festival offers dedicated training aimed at helping students and young professionals interested in advertising, marketing, communications and design.

Continuing the mission of providing a space for the next generation to grow and hone essential creative skills, the festival has this year expanded to offer four Academies, each one carefully structured for a different career discipline. Each bespoke course is conducted simultaneously during the festival week, under the guidance of an experienced tutor. Participants are guided to experience the best and most relevant parts of the festival’s learning programmes whilst also enjoying specialist sessions from industry leaders in addition to tailored training and group discussions

Alyna Haji Omar
Chief Executive Officer
JWT.

The honour of serving on the craft jury panel for Spikes Asia 2013 was truly rewarding. The sheer volume of work from the region was overwhelming but manageable largely due to the amazing efficiency of Lisa Berlin and her team.

The mix of jurors from advertising and film production made it all the more interesting, I found the exchange of knowledge, invaluable. My fellow jurors from advertising had an insiders view of how specialists from different backgrounds in film production viewed craft. The system of voting has evolved to a point where transparency and debate ensure great work has every chance of being noticed, discussed and dissected with great detail. The bar was high, and after a tough schedule of judging in the elimination and early rounds, Mayan, the Craft jury Chair managed the discussion process with great skill. The debates were healthy, rich and impartial and the work that was truly deserving of metal got recognized. Personally, for me the experience was refreshing, and the chance to view and analyze the best of craft skills from all of Asia was enriching. I am truly thankful to Ranil for having nominated me in the first instance, and for doing so much work to put the local ad industry on the map.

Russell Miranda
Executive Creative Director
Grant McCann Erickson.

“Spikes 2012 was fantastic. This year’s event was bigger than ever and brought together the best creative minds in Asia plus a bunch more from the rest of the world. As always, the work on show was inspiring and really hit home the heights we need to aspire to in terms of ideas and crafting. There were also plenty of eye-opening lectures and seminars from industry leaders, including quite a few from legends of the business like Piyush Pandey. With lots of insights to absorb and experiences to learn from, the most talked-about subject at Spikes 2012 seemed to be branded content. Though this is hardly new, advancements in the internet have made it much easier and cheaper to distribute original material, so it is increasingly becoming a brand’s weapon of choice. An excellent example of this is Red Bull’s recent skydive from space, which was streamed live on the internet and sought out and watched by millions. Apart from Spikes, Singapore, one week out from the grand prix, with its relentless malls and always-crowded hawker centres, was a welcome change of scene – when you have a big bowl of fruit & nut every day, a little vanilla once in a while is nice.

Eraj Wirasinghe
Associate Creative Director
Leo Burnett Solutions inc.

Stimulating workshops, students swap stories & Singapore Fried Noodles

To say that Spikes was a 3-day packed event with great lectures, master classes and after parties would be similar to saying I don’t love chocolate….

Spikes was way, way more than that. It matched every expectation I had and more.
Profiled as a program tailored to the specific needs of creative students under 23, Spikes Asia lived up to its promise with a dynamic course mentor, Noor Azhar, the evergreen radio guru Tony Hertz, David Gurer & others. The classes spotlighted some of the finest creative work in the world & opened our minds to explore unthought-of avenues, encouraged us to zig where we had previously zagged.

Besides our own course we were at liberty to hob nob with the big wigs at the main Spikes Festival, drool over the exhibition and witness first hand the brilliance of the award winners.

What was unbeatable was the feeling that I was sitting among the next generation of creative power houses. My roommate could well win a Cannes Lion in the near future. Heck, I could win one, too.

The Young Spikes confirmed that creative growth is a process that never stops. I am now infinitely more inspired and certainly more prepared to face my chosen career with fire.

My deep thanks to Metal Factor & Ranil for making this happen.

Sahil Gunasekera

Attending the Spikes Asia Academy in 2011 was one of the best experiences of my life. Having an amazing mentor like Noor Azhar added to the value of this learning opportunity. Attending intimate sessions with some of the biggest names in advertising, getting to attend the Spikes Asia Awards night added to the experience. The river cruise as well as the meet and greet dinner at Clark Quay were excellent opportunities to meet a cross section of like minded people. I gained immensely by interacting, studying and working with students like myself from across the region. Thank you everyone for giving me such a valuable learning opportunity.

Shanika Perera