Forewords

FOREWORD JANI GUEST & CLARE DONALD CHAIRS OF THE BOARD

Dear Industry Friends

This is an incredibly exciting foreword to be writing. Tonight, is the very first Young Arrows Awards, launched this year as part of The British Arrows, and we could not be more proud and delighted to have inaugurated it in the final year of our tenure as Chairs.

The entire journey to this evening has been redeeming. We started by convincing the amazing Melody Sylvester, Head of Film at House337 to be one of our Jury chairs, soon to be joined by Juliette Larthe, Founding Partner of Prettybird. We felt very smug to have chosen these two extraordinary women because together they created the most genuinely diverse jury we have ever encountered.

As a result, the judging was fun, respectful, insightful and refreshing. We had a fabulous day at The Mill watching great work from young people across our industry. I think we were all blown away by the levels of talent that this next generation is already demonstrating. Thank you again to our jurors for their passion and commitment.

We need to mention that we could not have got to this important event without our sponsors. And what a stellar line-up of industry heavyweights agreed to stand behind this important recognition of new and undiscovered talent. A massive thank you to you all. Your generosity has made this all possible.

This show has been curated by emerging talent to celebrate emerging talent, so a big shout out to Jack Field for the amazing graphics, Ethan Day our audio producer and Michael Haines our sound designer at Factory, composer Chris Christoforou and composer/music supervisor Joshua Gibbard at Siren, Dave Robinson at tenthree for editing the shortlist sizzle and our event producer Lily Alexander at TBI Media for keeping the whole thing under control.

And of course, to Lisa Lavender, Sergio Colina Restrepo, Sophie Cantopher and Blue Edwards for all their ongoing hard work and dedication that enables The British Arrows to champion new and diverse talent, enabling pathways for entry into our industry for the clear benefit of us all.

We hope you have a wonderful evening

Clare & Jani

FOREWORD MELODY SYLVESTER CO-CHAIR OF THE YOUNG ARROWS JURY HEAD OF FILM, HOUSE337

Lisa Lavender and Devon Pearce came to see me back in 2019 and told me about the plan to start The Young Arrows. After 10 years at Ridley Scott Associates, I had recently become Head of Film at Engine and was determined to advocate for up and coming talent as I rebuilt the production team. I was also keen to reflect this ambition in the work we made at the agency too and give young directors a chance to work on some of the clients we had.

So a new awards show to recognise and reward emerging talent, completely resonated with me. That it was derived from the most respected and coveted awards shows in British Advertising, I literally bit their hand off to get involved.

I was in.

Then of course 2020 brought the global pandemic and The Young Arrows like many things had to be shelved as we rode out this worldwide calamity. As we all try to rebuild our personal and working lives, we must remember to keep our attention on helping each other. We must think about the future of our teams and how we do what we do. To focus on the industry’s emerging talent is a great way to do that in a proactive way. The Young Arrows offers a range of categories with a lower entry fee and a more flexible eligibility criteria allowing more people the chance to win an Arrow award. Being an award winner can only have a positive impact on those in the early part of their career. It shines a light on their talent, which cannot hurt.

I have no shortage of jury experience and have sat on all of the major industry awards covering design, animation, advertising, craft, film, print. I love the work. I find it truly satisfying and incredibly rewarding to see the best of the best in all areas of the craft. It keeps me plugged in and connected to my peers. The level of debate is always fresh and challenging and it’s great to have quality time with everyone. Many may deride the principle of awards themselves, but the positive effect of winning or being shortlisted on someone’s career is unquestionable. I, myself have been fortunate enough to be part of many teams that have won multiple Arrows over the years. It’s a wonderful boost for all involved.

Sadly I have routinely been one of the few black faces on these juries. By 2019 I had resolved not to accept any more invitations to sit on any more juries unless I could Chair one. Not due to ego, but due to a desire to help shape a more diverse and inclusive selection of fantastic industry talent. Lisa and the team fully supported that and as soon as the pandemic had subsided, made good on the promise for me to do just that.

And with my wonderful co-chair Juliette Larthe from Prettybird, we were able to put our heads together to invite a truly diverse panel of underrepresented inspirational talent to take part. These are all people that have extensive experience in their respective fields but many have never been invited to judge before.

We remain determined to make real long lasting industry change and for us, this jury is just the start of that. Change is in our hands, we need to show up and keep pushing. We must champion underrepresented voices.

To all those that entered, keep on keeping on. We look forward to seeing what comes next from all of you. There was such a wide selection of truly fresh ideas, innovative design, animation and production on show from all quarters. None of the decisions were easy and we took every one of them very seriously. There was much debate.

Thank you to all of those who took part as jurors, we salute your time commitment, energy and good humour on the live judging day. It was lively and fun and so wonderful to see all of your beautiful faces looking back at us as we tried to guide you through all of the work. Clear thinking, fresh opinions and lots of love in the room. Bravo!

Thank you to Juliette, you are tireless in your commitment and are fearless in speaking out. I love how punchy you are. Respect. Thank you to Jani, Claire, Lisa and Sergio for your unwavering patience and belief. We were both so busy and you made it so easy for us. Really appreciate it.

Peace & Love

FOREWORD JULIETTE LARTHE CO-CHAIR OF THE YOUNG ARROWS JURY FOUNDING PARTNER, PRETTYBIRD

The Young Arrows continues the legacy of our most respected British Arrows, this time with the opportunity to spearhead the newest contributors to the world of moving image advertising.

It was such a joy to have co-chaired this initiative alongside the incomparable Melody Sylvester and our fantastic jury, the discussions in the room were exciting and we unanimously felt the vital force and an arrow straight to the heart at the immense level of work as reflected in our conversations in the room.

It’s crucially important we support, promote and encourage our new talent. It’s great to see the progress that the industry is making in championing inclusivity, and through the Young Arrows, we are able to recognise and celebrate this change. The Young Arrows opens doors for up and coming talent, creating opportunities for those that enter who may otherwise take a long time to get on the industry radar.

It’s an honour to be a part of a platform that demonstrates their excellence across a range of crafts and skill-sets, and recognition from the Young Arrows will add fuel to their already burning ambition, inspiring others coming up through the ranks. It’s not often recognised but Awards are about submitting the work, being proud of the achievement and feeling like the work deserves recognition. As such Young Arrows is a huge opportunity for young creatives to be able to allow their work to be seen by the wider industry and to be able to champion new talent - meaning it’s complex and not just about the work that gets a gong…everyone who submitted their work which didn’t make it to the shortlist, know you are also seen, the competition was very tough. My take out would be… keep on keeping on.. sometimes the journey is longer sometimes shorter but it’s all about the action, the process and not the destination..