Face to Face with... Andrew Human

On 15 September Creativity Week Cape Town will kick into life and see the best and brightest of the South African advertising community decend on Cape Town for a week of reflection, insight and celebration which ends with the annual Lories Awards. Here Loeries CEO, Andrew Human, discusses the event, what we can expect and why the Loeries is a little like the mafia.

The Loeries is going from strength to strength; what do you put that down to?

I think the communications industry is at a point where there is an increasing awareness of the important role that creativity and innovation play. Marketers are taking more notice and the creative industry is becoming more recognised as a key player in the economic success of brands.

You announced last year that you would be stepping down from you role as CEO of The Loeries after the 2011 event; what made you change your mind?

I think the Loeries is a little like the mafia – you don't get to choose when to leave…

The Loeries is no longer just a one-off awards nights but is the culmination of Creativity Week Cape Town; how hard was it to grow the festival from one thing to the other?

Jokes aside, this is the reason for my continued involvement. This year marks a very big shift, with our judging week and international seminar being incorporated into the same week as the awards – together making up the backbone of Creative Week Cape Town. There's a lot of hard work involved in bringing this change about, from many people, so hopefully we'll get to enjoy the results soon!

How important is it for the South African community to come together in this way?

South Africa is rather cut off from many of the world's economic centres so I think the Loeries offers a great opportunity to provide inspiration for everyone involved in the communication industry, and to be immersed in the best work that coming out of the region. This year, for the first time, we introduced a category for the Rest of Africa and the Middle East and this will be a great start to recognising all the best work from the continent.

And how important is a competitive national awards show to a nation’s advertising output?

I think it's important to have awards for any sphere of our lives. Specifically with a creative industry, it helps to give people something to strive for and be measured by. We are only highlinghting the very best work that is being produced and the intention is that this recognition will continually filter down, increasing the general quality of advertising and communications.

How strong is the work that’s coming out of South Africa at the moment?

Measured on a global scale, South Africa has been doing extremely well, with six Cannes Grands Prix since 2006. To put this into perspective, prior to 2006, the whole of Africa had never won a Cannes Grand Prix so this is a remarkable period of achievement. I think the most important thing now is for South Africa to continue that momentum and build on those successes with more international recognition.

What’s the hardest part about putting the event on?

Without a doubt it's the bringing so many things into alignment all in one split second. We work 365 days to start a show at exactly 7pm on one day. It's a little weird actually.

What can people expect from this year’s Loeries?

Our main focus is to create an inspiring environment. The awards ceremonies are designed to make the work king. The intention is that even if you didn't walk up on stage, you will be inspired by what you see and will be raring to get to work on your next great idea.

Last year saw David Hasslehoff guest present the final awards; will it be tough to top that?

Yes, he was a great personality and much enjoyed by the audience. It will be tough, but we have had 365 days to work on it…

What are you most looking forward to about the week?

The changes that we have this year – judging in the same week and going straight into the awards. And the international seminar is very exciting.