Thirteen Gold ADDYs and 97 Silver ADDYs were awarded at The Senator

Baltimore’s community of advertisers, marketers and creatives gathered in person for the first time since before the COVID-19 pandemic at the historic Senator Theatre on March 9 to celebrate the 49th Annual American Advertising Awards Show, presented by the American Advertising Federation of Baltimore (AAFB). The show marked a major milestone with the most ADDY awards ever presented in one season by AAFB.

The distinguished advertising industry event, which was produced by Jeremy Martin, creative director at Novak Birch, with the theme “Lights. Camera. ADDY®s” as a nod to the beautiful theater venue and the glamor of the red carpet and movie premieres. Thirteen Gold ADDYs and 97 Silver ADDYs were awarded to top agencies, production houses, and in-house marketing teams in the Baltimore region, with more than 240 local professionals in attendance.

“This year’s event was a stylish relaunch for in-person events after two years of virtual celebrations. It was thrilling to roll out the red carpet and celebrate the creative excellence in our community,” said AAFB President Kathe Flynn. “Time and time again, Baltimore has proven to be a leading light in the advertising industry and this year was no exception.”

In addition to awarding 110 ADDYs, the event included “Last Looks,” an orange crush-inspired cocktail sponsored by Producers and delicious eats from Clark Burger. “Last Looks” is the call on set before filming begins and was the choice of libation for many guests before heading into the awards show. A portion of the proceeds from this event was donated to the AAF Baltimore Foundation Student Scholarship Fund.

Lights. Camera. ADDYs was sponsored by Producers, Clean Cuts: A Three Seas Company, Cerebral Lounge: A Three Seas Company, Noise Distillery: A Three Seas Company, Goodell DeVries, Indigo Ink, DCG ONE and Capitol Communicator.

Top honors included:
● Best of Show – Cinematography, Campaign: Sympatico Media, LLC for “TuneCore Unlimited” – TuneCore
● Joe Cahill’s Judges Choice – Virtual Reality: bully! Entertainment for “Face the Pitch” – Microsoft
● Shelby Georgis’ Judges Choice – Internet Commercial: Vandergrift Productions for “What is Art” – Baltimore Office of Promotion & the Arts
● Joseph Nother’s Judges Choice – Film, Media & Sound, Branded Content: Early Light Media for “Remarkable Legacy” – Smyth Jewelers

At the ceremony, the AAFB announced the recipients of its prestigious individual achievement awards:
● AAF Silver Medal Award presented to Andrès Zapata, EVP, strategy & founder at idfive
● AAF District 2 Patricia Martin Crystal Prism Award presented to Krystal Cotriss, creative manager at Barcoding, Inc.
● Lifetime Achievement Award presented to Allan Charles, chairman & chief creative officer at TBC
● Katherine Mahool Fowke Iconoclast Award presented to Diane Devaney, president at Devaney & Associates, Inc.

In addition to Best of Show, boutique production company Sympatico won the most Gold awards — 4. Planit won the most Silver awards (18) and awards overall, followed by Mission with 15 awards.

“Our world has changed so much over the past couple years, which ironically seems like a harbinger of even more – maybe constant – change,” Jed Jecelin, executive creative director at Planit said in a press statement with the subject line, in part, saying: “Planit Dominates with Whopping 18 Baltimore ADDYs”

“We’ve all been forced to see, do and experience things in countless new ways,” Jecelin said. “What many people thought would never work…has worked. What seemed impossible…has been proven possible. With that as backdrop, a sense of evolution and advancement has been a common thread in our most recent award-winning work, which spans a wide and wild array of industries, products and audiences. I’m so proud of the collective imagination and perseverance of our team and, as importantly, its genuine care for our clients’ brands.”

The American Advertising Awards competition is the industry’s largest and most representative competition—attracting more than 35,000 entries every year in local competitions. Gold winners at the local level move on to the district competition, competing with agencies from Maryland, Pennsylvania, New York, Delaware, Virginia and Washington, D.C. A win at the district level earns a spot in the National American Advertising Awards Competition. National winners will be announced at the AAF’s conference, ADMERICA, on June 1-4, 2023 in St. Louis.

Founded in 1920, the American Advertising Federation of Baltimore (AAFB) connects, educates, and advocates for thousands of communications professionals in advertising, marketing, business, tech, education, and law. It is a 501(c)(6) non-profit and a chapter of the American Advertising Federation which includes 200 local clubs across the U.S. representing nearly 40,000 advertising professionals. Visit Baltimoreadvertising.com to learn more.