Let’s devalue awards! (Part 4,497)

News finally reaches me (I’m 5500 miles away) that D&AD is introducing Pencils for the In-Book and Nomination levels of award.

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That’s nice.

But what about the poor sods who entered their work and didn’t get an award at all? What about a pink pencil for them? One that’s been slightly chewed. And then there’s the people that didn’t even make any ads, what about them and their empty shelves? I’m stunned D&AD has yet to launch a compensatory red pencil with a little monster gonk on the end.

I remember when I first arrived at AMV in 1998. Walking around the creative department, stuffed as it was with Yellow Pencils, and even the odd Black, I had something to aspire to. There were only a few awards in the industry back then and these creatives had won the lot, many times over. That was a big achievement because these baubles were rare, very hard to win and judged by the best creatives in the country.

Now there are so many Lions, Pencils and assorted golden figures reaching up towards something or other that they’re worth less (or worthless, depending on your point of view). I can see a good reason for the proliferation of Lions: they are a great money-making exercise that grows ever greater with each additional category. But why the extra Pencils? They can only cost D&AD cash, and it won’t be long before certain creatives have shelves so heaving with wood that they’ll be declared a fire hazard. If your work is lauded in many different categories you could easily get fifteen pencils in one year. Whoopee…

Sorry, D&AD, I can see absolutely no merit in doing something like this. It’s simply a physical manifestation of this sentiment: