AAA students win Inaugural Facebook Challenge Student Award.

Three students of AAA School of Advertising in Cape Town have won this year Facebook Challenge, an official Loerie Award in the Student category.

The award, which aims to celebrate the achievements of future creatives as they redefine creativity in the mobile era, was created in partnership with Facebook and The Nelson Mandela Foundation.

With students from across Africa and The Middle East briefed to address gender inequality awareness through the development of a mobile video campaign, the inaugural Facebook Challenge Loerie was won by Peni Buckton, Claudia Bester (both 3rd year students studying BA in Creative Brand Communication) and Lunje Jwambe (2nd year student studying Copy Writing diploma).

The winning trio created an engaging piece of work called ‘Everyday Armour’ which is an ‘anti-harassment couture’ brand that seeks to make thought-provoking social commentary on the gender-based violence women face daily. These students felt that as women, they could all relate to the small things that women have to do consciously and sub-consciously to prepare themselves for any instance; be it taking a different route home, wearing oversized clothing to deter unwelcome advances or even go as far as taking martial arts/self-defense classes, simply because they are born female. The campaign aims to shed light on this unfortunate reality and make a small difference in society.

Many congratulations from us at Facebook to the winners for not only embracing the challenge, but creating a thought-provoking and moving mobile video campaign

“The quality of work we saw coming from students was truly inspirational,” says Nunu Ntshingila, Regional Director Facebook, Africa. “There was a lot of conceptual innovation, as well as fascinating approaches to the use of technology. Many congratulations from us at Facebook to the winners for not only embracing the challenge, but creating a thought-provoking and moving mobile video campaign. We look forward to our ongoing work with advertising schools and universities as we continue to support and invest in young and diverse creative talent.”

The three students received a bronze Loerie for their work, titled ‘Every Day Armour’. Commenting on their win, student Lunje Jwambe said: “It’s been a real honour to win a Loerie. We really enjoyed the opportunity to think about mobile in a different and challenging way and coupled with social consciousness, this truly made it a fascinating experience. It’s been very good grounding for each of us and one that I’m sure will stand us in good stead for our future careers.”

Charles Maggs, Head of Creative Faculty AAA, Cape Town, added: “The project exposes students to the demands of the digital communication front line. They learn a huge amount as they work, and the thematic tie-in to social issues makes the process relevant to everyone on a personal level.”