A record 58 nations have been represented in the 1,745 Mad Stars 2022 finalist pool, and the United Arab Emirates has fared particularly well in the rankings. The festival, one of the biggest in the world, is centered in South Korea and honors the finest in advertising from across the globe. The selected work was the product of a thorough review by global creative industry professionals – the judging panel included 301 preliminary judges from 85 countries and chose the work from around 18,700 entries.
This year, the UAE had the most shortlists, with Impact BBDO (46), TBWA/Raad (41), and Havas Middle East (22) leading the way. VMLYR (17), Horizon FCB (13), the UAE Government Media Office (11), Wunderman Thomson (8), Leo Burnett KSA (8), MEMAC Ogilvy (7), Lowe (6), Publicis (4), Commonwealth McCann (2), and M&C Saatchi (1) are also on the list.
The UAE had the most finalists (176), followed by Australia (144), Japan (135), India (107), and Singapore (103).
The UAE is rising in the advertising sector, with firms’ work frequently being shortlisted for international prizes in the top ten in the recent year. At this time, ‘The Elections Edition’ by Impact BBDO had the most finalists worldwide, with a total of 16. The campaign received the Grand Prix at Cannes Lions earlier this year.
“It’s remarkable to see some familiar names in our finalists. Impact BBDO leads the nominations this year with ‘The Elections Edition’ campaign. Impact BBDO also won the Grand Prix of the Year in 2019 and 2020, so it’s great to see them start so well this year as well,” said Paul Conversely, Awards Manager at Mad Stars.
All selected entries have advanced to the final judgment round. The winners will be revealed online on the competition’s last day, August 25-27.
