First Published in
With a record breaking 35% more entries this year into the competition, it seems fitting that the Construction New Media Awards' association to the Design Indaba has allowed Design to become its quintessential criteria.
UK judges: Simon Waterfall of Poke, Daljit Singh from Digit, Creative Review editor Patrick Burgoyne, and South Africa's Andries Odendaal presented a feedback session at the well-attended awards ceremony held on Thursday 24th February 2005 at the International Convention Centre in Cape Town.
With its ability to keep the judges' interest all the way through, the outright winner of the Offline category was the 40-odd page digital publication, Sub_Urban Magazine Vol 3. Its winning feature was a "page turning" device that the judges had not seen before - it was done so well that it actually felt like the physical act. This, and the mammoth mix of music and video material literally kept them turning page, after page, after page. The judges were so impressed that it was awarded the Grand Prix - the best overall work, across all categories and one member of the Sub_Urban team will be flown to London to spend a week at Poke (www.pokelondon.co.uk).
"Although only one prize is available, we were determined to make the trip together." Bryan Little, Sub_Urban
The brains behind the open source bi-annual underground urban youth culture CD-Rom, Sub_Urban Magazine, is a team of four bootlegging creatives who have known each other since childhood. Their aim is to expose and develop unknown South African talent working in design, film, music, journalism, art, photography, fashion etc., resulting in a valuable platform that introduces and spreads new work worldwide.
Their first two issues were sold out within weeks, and the current edition is available in small, alternative retail outlets and at Exclusive Books.
The judges loved the interaction of fast-paced website boyBlack (www.boyblack.co.za), which was the winner of the Online Self-promotion section. The site never got boring, as there was always so much to discover, and they were amazed and excited to see low-level graphics being used in such a novel way.
Nashua/SASI Swimwear 2004 - Less means a lot more this summer (www.sasiswimwear.co.za), the winning site entered by Ripe Design into the Online Functional category, so impressed the illustrious male judges that they kept wanting to explore the beautifully crafted work more and more and more… Rumour has it that this was not due to the subject matter - but because of how the content was presented...
"We have messy lives, so our site had to follow suit." Maciek & Shaun, boyBlack
The boyBlack team wanted people to see what they could do and display radical new thinking. They wanted to create a space that allowed for rapid, flexible expansion, where rough ideas could be added quickly and freely, where scale was not "screen" restricted and at the same time have a personal and fearless edge.
The site therefore imitates boyBlack's own lives merged with their close connection to the continuously evolving imagery of street art, expressed by public space practitioners. It shows their weaknesses and strengths - it's messy, multi-directional, learning, rough and ever-changing.
"The site has clocked up over 120 gigs worth of bandwidth since it went live on 15 October 2004!"
Mark Winkler, Ripe
The Nashua/SASI Swimwear 2004 site's main aim was to support the popular November issue of SASI Swimwear magazine as well as to expand their existing database by extending the island experience to visitor's desktops.
Light and flirtatious in tone, the entire experience is a swimwear photographer's view from inside a 3D wooden island cabin. Visitors can access picture galleries, voting polls, video clips and an adventure game - all this, just steps away from the tranquil beach where the models were photographed.
Ripe has produced the Nashua/SASI Swimwear site for the third time running. They are currently in planning stages for the 2005 site.
Pixel Project's quirky entry, Juju (www.juju.co.za), took top honours in the Online Non-functional category. Unusual animation and sound, which the judges had not come across before, made this site for a visual communications studio, thoroughly enjoyable.
"We produce our work in a variety of outputs, including Internet, DVD and television, and needed a website that showcased our technical skills and know-how, as well as our understanding of new media as a legitimate platform." Peter Robson, Juju
Juju is a new breed of company, thriving on the ever-blurring boundaries between marketing, entertainment and technology. Their site reflects this vision in its design and interactivity as well as with the site's character Juju, who helps showcase their product through smooth and intuitive navigation.
The use of Macromedia's Flash and Contribute, allowed Pixel Project to accelerate the development of the site and deliver exactly what the company was looking for - a cutting-edge design and interactivity that is easily updateable.
Look out for version 2 coming out soon!
Amid a bit of controversy, the Construction New Media Awards intro AV, produced by Orijin New Media for last year's awards, was the winning entry of the newly introduced category of Motion Graphics. Its execution was thoroughly flawless and the judges felt that this noteworthy piece deserved to win, as it would provide a benchmark for future entries in this category.
The Student category was swamped with real talent as in previous years - these awards have proved to be fantastic exposure for up-and-coming genii. Portfolio 04, Gordon Bakkes' gem, had incredible motion graphics, an enormous range of styles, and would have competed in the corporate section quite effortlessly. If he has not been snapped up already - someone please employ him!
Sponsored by Vodacom 3G, the Construction New Media Awards since birth in 2001, has grown and evolved to become one of the key New Media Design awards in South Africa.
To all the winners, congratulations, and Happy 5th Birthday to the Construction New Media Awards!
Full list of results
Grand prix
Sub_Urban Magazine
Suburban
Online - self-promotion
Winner
boyBlack
boyBlack
www.boyblack.co.za
Finalists
Peepshow
Fluorescence Media Design www.peepshowtheband.co.za
Run-of-the-country
Six Million Dollar
www.sixmilliondollar.com/run-of-the-country
Soundlab
Soundlab
www.sound-lab.co.za
Online - functional
Winner
Nashua/SASI Swimwear 2004 - Less means a lot more this summer
Ripe Design
www.sasiswimwear.co.za
Finalists
M&G Online's Interactive Guide to 2004 Elections
Mail & Guardian Online
www.dailymail.co.za/elections2004
Ashley Isham, London
Ukubona digital media
www.ashleyisham.com
Red Bull Big Wave Africa
Stonewall Productions
www.redbullbwa.com
Miller Genuine Draft Consumer Website
Stonewall Productions
www.millertime.co.za
Online - non-functional
Winner
Juju Website
Pixel Project
www.juju.co.za
Offline
Winner
Sub_Urban Magazine
Suburban
(GRAND PRIX WINNER)
Finalists
Nashua/SASI Swimwear 2004
Ripe Design
Motion graphics
Winner
CNMA Awards Intro AV 04
Orijin New Media
Finalists
David Kramer Music Video
iaminawe
Nike vdj academy
Orijin New Media
Student award
Across all categories:
Winner
Portfolio 04
Gordon Bakkes
Finalists
Omakhelwane
Khayalethu Mtshali
Republik
Wiehan de Jager
Jake
Jake Brewer
www.jake.co.za
shaun
Shaun Lombard www.conceptinteractive.net/2004/shaunL
Dotvision visual media design
Eddie Van Rensburg
www.dotvision.co.za
What the judges said:
Patrick Burgoyne, Creative Review [UK]
Sub_Urban was just about the best interactive magazine that I've seen. It may have used an old-fashioned technology but, it did it beautifully and entirely appropriately. Also, the content was excellent - often with these things all the effort goes into the interface, but here there was genuinely interesting stuff to view, read and listen to.
As for boyBlack, it was immediately obvious that this was a winner - it was just totally unlike anything else and very enjoyably bonkers.
Overall, we had a good mix of professional, solid sites, which delivered in an appropriate manner to their target audience - e.g. Sports Illustrated - and some genuinely exciting innovation e.g. the student winner.
Simon Waterfall, Poke [UK]
As hard as it was for a Londoner escaping from the first signs of snow, looking out over Table Mountain into a crystal clear sky... the work really shone the brightest.
It was a mix of very good and very not so good. As far as SA is from the northern hemisphere it seems that trend for 45 degree floating windows, arrows (in any form) and the old classic of any thing to do with airport graphics still persists in a dark recess of designers minds, it is a true global epidemic. Stop. Seek help.
The good was extremely good, well-thought out and appropriate, we commended so many more pieces that were just pipped to the post.
The Grand Prix winner was just that, truly stomach turningly good. An old idea but done so well as to make Daljit and I give up our day jobs and go climb that mountain.
Daljit Singh, Digit [UK]
The standard of work that I saw and judged was of a very high calibre, good thought and ingenious approach was easily noticeable in the digital executions. It was clear that interactive design being produced in SA can easily stand aside the best in the world.
But what was even more impressive was the high standard of the student entries, it was easily just as good as the professional ones and in some cases better, proving that design education in SA is manoeuvring into a position of excellence.
We should open an office in SA as soon as we can!
Andries Odendaal [SA]
I am pleased to say that each year the entries seem to have not only grown in quantity, but also in quality. This year was no exception, and it is great to see a growing number of South African agencies landing better clients in the process. At the end of the day there can only be a few winners, and I trust that we have awarded the work that stood out in their application, execution and use of the medium.
If there was one point that I'd like to drive home, it would be to encourage developers to really explore and think about the medium that they are working in.
Digital and interactive media offers unique possibilities that no other media offers and I personally like to see work that runs with this instead of simply porting concepts from other media. In respect to this, it may seem quite ironic that this year's Grand Prix was awarded to a project that adopted a book metaphor as interface. Besides the fact that it was exceptionally well crafted, what stood out was not the interface, but the exceptional content. It marked a welcome shift from the focus on interface design to the design of great multi-media content and this is what we felt worth awarding.
Congratulations to all the winners.
With a record breaking 35% more entries this year into the competition, it seems fitting that the Construction New Media Awards' association to the Design Indaba has allowed Design to become its quintessential criteria.
UK judges: Simon Waterfall of Poke, Daljit Singh from Digit, Creative Review editor Patrick Burgoyne, and South Africa's Andries Odendaal presented a feedback session at the well-attended awards ceremony held on Thursday 24th February 2005 at the International Convention Centre in Cape Town.
With its ability to keep the judges' interest all the way through, the outright winner of the Offline category was the 40-odd page digital publication, Sub_Urban Magazine Vol 3. Its winning feature was a "page turning" device that the judges had not seen before - it was done so well that it actually felt like the physical act. This, and the mammoth mix of music and video material literally kept them turning page, after page, after page. The judges were so impressed that it was awarded the Grand Prix - the best overall work, across all categories and one member of the Sub_Urban team will be flown to London to spend a week at Poke (www.pokelondon.co.uk).
"Although only one prize is available, we were determined to make the trip together." Bryan Little, Sub_Urban
The brains behind the open source bi-annual underground urban youth culture CD-Rom, Sub_Urban Magazine, is a team of four bootlegging creatives who have known each other since childhood. Their aim is to expose and develop unknown South African talent working in design, film, music, journalism, art, photography, fashion etc., resulting in a valuable platform that introduces and spreads new work worldwide.
Their first two issues were sold out within weeks, and the current edition is available in small, alternative retail outlets and at Exclusive Books.
The judges loved the interaction of fast-paced website boyBlack (www.boyblack.co.za), which was the winner of the Online Self-promotion section. The site never got boring, as there was always so much to discover, and they were amazed and excited to see low-level graphics being used in such a novel way.
Nashua/SASI Swimwear 2004 - Less means a lot more this summer (www.sasiswimwear.co.za), the winning site entered by Ripe Design into the Online Functional category, so impressed the illustrious male judges that they kept wanting to explore the beautifully crafted work more and more and more… Rumour has it that this was not due to the subject matter - but because of how the content was presented...
"We have messy lives, so our site had to follow suit." Maciek & Shaun, boyBlack
The boyBlack team wanted people to see what they could do and display radical new thinking. They wanted to create a space that allowed for rapid, flexible expansion, where rough ideas could be added quickly and freely, where scale was not "screen" restricted and at the same time have a personal and fearless edge.
The site therefore imitates boyBlack's own lives merged with their close connection to the continuously evolving imagery of street art, expressed by public space practitioners. It shows their weaknesses and strengths - it's messy, multi-directional, learning, rough and ever-changing.
"The site has clocked up over 120 gigs worth of bandwidth since it went live on 15 October 2004!"
Mark Winkler, Ripe
The Nashua/SASI Swimwear 2004 site's main aim was to support the popular November issue of SASI Swimwear magazine as well as to expand their existing database by extending the island experience to visitor's desktops.
Light and flirtatious in tone, the entire experience is a swimwear photographer's view from inside a 3D wooden island cabin. Visitors can access picture galleries, voting polls, video clips and an adventure game - all this, just steps away from the tranquil beach where the models were photographed.
Ripe has produced the Nashua/SASI Swimwear site for the third time running. They are currently in planning stages for the 2005 site.
Pixel Project's quirky entry, Juju (www.juju.co.za), took top honours in the Online Non-functional category. Unusual animation and sound, which the judges had not come across before, made this site for a visual communications studio, thoroughly enjoyable.
"We produce our work in a variety of outputs, including Internet, DVD and television, and needed a website that showcased our technical skills and know-how, as well as our understanding of new media as a legitimate platform." Peter Robson, Juju
Juju is a new breed of company, thriving on the ever-blurring boundaries between marketing, entertainment and technology. Their site reflects this vision in its design and interactivity as well as with the site's character Juju, who helps showcase their product through smooth and intuitive navigation.
The use of Macromedia's Flash and Contribute, allowed Pixel Project to accelerate the development of the site and deliver exactly what the company was looking for - a cutting-edge design and interactivity that is easily updateable.
Look out for version 2 coming out soon!
Amid a bit of controversy, the Construction New Media Awards intro AV, produced by Orijin New Media for last year's awards, was the winning entry of the newly introduced category of Motion Graphics. Its execution was thoroughly flawless and the judges felt that this noteworthy piece deserved to win, as it would provide a benchmark for future entries in this category.
The Student category was swamped with real talent as in previous years - these awards have proved to be fantastic exposure for up-and-coming genii. Portfolio 04, Gordon Bakkes' gem, had incredible motion graphics, an enormous range of styles, and would have competed in the corporate section quite effortlessly. If he has not been snapped up already - someone please employ him!
Sponsored by Vodacom 3G, the Construction New Media Awards since birth in 2001, has grown and evolved to become one of the key New Media Design awards in South Africa.
To all the winners, congratulations, and Happy 5th Birthday to the Construction New Media Awards!
Full list of results
Grand prix
Sub_Urban Magazine
Suburban
Online - self-promotion
Winner
boyBlack
boyBlack
www.boyblack.co.za
Finalists
Peepshow
Fluorescence Media Design www.peepshowtheband.co.za
Run-of-the-country
Six Million Dollar
www.sixmilliondollar.com/run-of-the-country
Soundlab
Soundlab
www.sound-lab.co.za
Online - functional
Winner
Nashua/SASI Swimwear 2004 - Less means a lot more this summer
Ripe Design
www.sasiswimwear.co.za
Finalists
M&G Online's Interactive Guide to 2004 Elections
Mail & Guardian Online
www.dailymail.co.za/elections2004
Ashley Isham, London
Ukubona digital media
www.ashleyisham.com
Red Bull Big Wave Africa
Stonewall Productions
www.redbullbwa.com
Miller Genuine Draft Consumer Website
Stonewall Productions
www.millertime.co.za
Online - non-functional
Winner
Juju Website
Pixel Project
www.juju.co.za
Offline
Winner
Sub_Urban Magazine
Suburban
(GRAND PRIX WINNER)
Finalists
Nashua/SASI Swimwear 2004
Ripe Design
Motion graphics
Winner
CNMA Awards Intro AV 04
Orijin New Media
Finalists
David Kramer Music Video
iaminawe
Nike vdj academy
Orijin New Media
Student award
Across all categories:
Winner
Portfolio 04
Gordon Bakkes
Finalists
Omakhelwane
Khayalethu Mtshali
Republik
Wiehan de Jager
Jake
Jake Brewer
www.jake.co.za
shaun
Shaun Lombard www.conceptinteractive.net/2004/shaunL
Dotvision visual media design
Eddie Van Rensburg
www.dotvision.co.za
What the judges said:
Patrick Burgoyne, Creative Review [UK]
Sub_Urban was just about the best interactive magazine that I've seen. It may have used an old-fashioned technology but, it did it beautifully and entirely appropriately. Also, the content was excellent - often with these things all the effort goes into the interface, but here there was genuinely interesting stuff to view, read and listen to.
As for boyBlack, it was immediately obvious that this was a winner - it was just totally unlike anything else and very enjoyably bonkers.
Overall, we had a good mix of professional, solid sites, which delivered in an appropriate manner to their target audience - e.g. Sports Illustrated - and some genuinely exciting innovation e.g. the student winner.
Simon Waterfall, Poke [UK]
As hard as it was for a Londoner escaping from the first signs of snow, looking out over Table Mountain into a crystal clear sky... the work really shone the brightest.
It was a mix of very good and very not so good. As far as SA is from the northern hemisphere it seems that trend for 45 degree floating windows, arrows (in any form) and the old classic of any thing to do with airport graphics still persists in a dark recess of designers minds, it is a true global epidemic. Stop. Seek help.
The good was extremely good, well-thought out and appropriate, we commended so many more pieces that were just pipped to the post.
The Grand Prix winner was just that, truly stomach turningly good. An old idea but done so well as to make Daljit and I give up our day jobs and go climb that mountain.
Daljit Singh, Digit [UK]
The standard of work that I saw and judged was of a very high calibre, good thought and ingenious approach was easily noticeable in the digital executions. It was clear that interactive design being produced in SA can easily stand aside the best in the world.
But what was even more impressive was the high standard of the student entries, it was easily just as good as the professional ones and in some cases better, proving that design education in SA is manoeuvring into a position of excellence.
We should open an office in SA as soon as we can!
Andries Odendaal [SA]
I am pleased to say that each year the entries seem to have not only grown in quantity, but also in quality. This year was no exception, and it is great to see a growing number of South African agencies landing better clients in the process. At the end of the day there can only be a few winners, and I trust that we have awarded the work that stood out in their application, execution and use of the medium.
If there was one point that I'd like to drive home, it would be to encourage developers to really explore and think about the medium that they are working in.
Digital and interactive media offers unique possibilities that no other media offers and I personally like to see work that runs with this instead of simply porting concepts from other media. In respect to this, it may seem quite ironic that this year's Grand Prix was awarded to a project that adopted a book metaphor as interface. Besides the fact that it was exceptionally well crafted, what stood out was not the interface, but the exceptional content. It marked a welcome shift from the focus on interface design to the design of great multi-media content and this is what we felt worth awarding.
Congratulations to all the winners.
