7 Latin American Contenders for The Immortal Awards 2021

“One of our main learnings [when making this project] was realising that an innovation project is a long term project, with more trial and errors than we would have liked to have. After two years of research, we carried out a pilot project in Huacahuasi, a rural community 4000 metres above sea level, with people who didn’t speak Spanish. They only spoke Quechua, the millenary language of the Incas. They were very nice to commit to using AWA soap for months in order to decontaminate the river that brings the water they use for their daily living. We are still friends, remaining in touch with them through Celestino, the mayor of Huacahuasi. 

“Awa solved a cultural problem that occurs in many communities around the world: doing laundry in rivers. And it does so in a simple and organic way: using the soap as a decontamination system, respecting each cultural heritage. Awa is not a product, it’s a solution; that’s why the formula has been released for free, so that every company, NGO or government can use it to their advantage to improve water quality in their communities.” Sergio Franco Tosso, executive creative director, Fahrenheit DDB Lima

“It was a long process. It took us three years from idea to activation. And despite all the preparation, you are never ready to be working with ex-guerrillas. There are prejudices that start to fall from the first moment you talk to them. Understanding them as human beings with their own needs and dreams is the best part of the project. It is difficult, however, to see how many of their projects are at risk due to lack of support. Colombia is a country with many needs that cries out for ideas that give them visibility and support.

“It is not a small activation and the search for content is above the one for advertising awareness. It's not easy to find a brand that is this daring, that gets involved with issues that are not easy but absolutely necessary to address. And once the content was found, it was not just a video for social networks. It had a diffusion that impacted 14 countries and reached more than 27 million people. Only with such visibility, can we put this crucial issue on the agenda of the state to generate support for the projects of former guerrillas and thus prevent them from returning to war.” Alejandro Bermudez, regional creative director at CommonWealth McCann (Bogota) and executive creative director at Momentum McCann

“In times of fake news, valuing the news has never been more necessary. Being able to materialise this valuation by printing copies of the most important news from the country's largest newspaper in the mint was a dream come true. From choosing which news to represent, which pictures would associate each of them, to the challenges in crafting and printing the pieces, the entire process motivated us to make an artwork that could represent the importance of our message.

“We are living in a key moment in which the credibility of the media is being evaluated around the world. Valuing news that is checked and supported by facts has never been so important and, on the other hand, attracting the attention of people who receive fake news every day by message is always a challenge. I believe that using art with the national currency as a way to materialise our message was what made the project relevant and caught the attention of an audience that is no longer impressed by traditional narratives.” Juliana Leite, special projects director, Africa

“This project was developed when the case of Caster Semenya caught our creative team's attention. During research, we found that women have always had to prove that they are women to enter a competition. I well remember the impact we felt when we understood how bad the sex testing procedure was in high performance sports and how its logic still continues, even if subtly. Talking to athletes who went through this and understanding how such discrimination caused lifelong trauma was what motivated us even more to overcome the challenges and bring this project to life.

“A woman having to prove that she is a woman to compete seems like a lie. Researching and discovering that this has been happening for many decades and that the methods have only changed is what made us understand that the project was necessary and urgent. The video was the flagship of our movement, the rhythm in which its narrative unfolds, and the absurdity of the situation portrayed being based on real facts helped to generate empathy for the cause. And it is this empathy that drove the movement, making it resonate not only to the general public, but also among athletes, so much so that Caster Semenya herself used our project as part of her defence when she appealed to the European Court of Human Rights in an attempt to compete the 800m in Tokyo.” Juliana Leite, special projects director, Africa

“This project was created in the beginning of 2020. We were aiming to launch it when the pandemic was over, but had no perspective on when this was going to happen - September, October, November? Well, things didn’t improve as quickly as we all hoped, so we changed our plans, rewrote the script with the help of a real astronaut, and launched it at the end of the year, turning it into a message of hope, instead of a back to life celebration.

“Apart from the production value, I believe this work resonated - not only with the jury, but with consumers - because it’s so relatable. 2020 was a tough year and we all felt stranded, isolated, and in need of believing that everything would be alright again some day.” Fernando Duarte, creative director, AlmapBBDO

“This project was born on a Sunday at 8pm. It was incredible to see an idea born from home and that we all got as excited as we used to when we were in the agency. We had a gut feeling that we had something good and the client also felt connected. We started the adventure to create the first women's team in this particular competitive mode, hacking FIFA. To connect the professional women’s soccer team and different gamers was spectacular and seeing how the number of players in the club grew was very exciting. Also, seeing the creation of the first AB InBev gaming team in the world, made it timeless and even bigger.

“We believe that She Football Club is one of those ideas in which people connect in a deep way with a purpose. An idea that makes something visible that can make us all think if we are doing the things in the right way. Even in something like a video game, finding a simple and powerful way to hack the establishment and deliver a clear message is the key for an idea to make an impact and stay in everyone's memory.” Juan David Pardo, executive creative director, MullenLowe SSP3

“We have the best memories from making this project! We co-created this innovative product with people from all around the world which was a really inspiring process. From the beginning, we knew it was going to be huge and have a real impact on both consumers and the brand. And it did! We’ll never forget the messages we received on social media when we launched. That’s what we enjoyed the most. Those messages filled our hearts with love. Of course, as with any project, there were a number of obstacles we came up against but by some miracle we managed to solve them all. It’s definitely a highlight of our career and taught us a lot of new things!

“[We think it resonated] because it’s something people care about. And it’s real. A new product design is so simple, but a game changer at the same time. This is not advertising – it surpasses it. It’s totally different from other projects because it has the power to change people’s lives in a really meaningful way and that’s what resonated with the jury.” Sebastian Tarazaga and Daniel Minaker, CCOs, Wunderman Thompson LATAM, and Natalia Benincasa, CCO, Wunderman Thompson Argentina