From May 14–15, professionals from the Baltic advertising, design, and wider creative industries gathered in Riga at the Zuzeum Art Centre for Adwards, a festival celebrating creative excellence. The strong turnout highlighted Adwards’ focus on creativity and outstanding work, while the festival itself served as a unifying platform for the Baltic creative community. During the awards ceremony, the region’s most outstanding works were recognized, with three Grand Prix awards presented to works distinguished by exceptionally strong ideas, precise execution, and meaningful social impact. A total of 166 entries from Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia were shortlisted across a range of creative disciplines. Fourteen works received Gold trophies, 27 received Silver, and 30 received Bronze.
In the “Impact & Influence” category, the Grand Prix was awarded to the campaign “Failing at the Finish,” created by McCann Riga for the education initiative “Iespējamā misija”. In the “Visual & Spatial” category, the Grand Prix went to the project “MO Museum,” created by the Vilnius agency Sons & Daughters ID. In the “Content & Storytelling” category, the winning work was “Vote Buying,” developed by Not Perfect Vilnius for the NGO White Gloves.
“Great creativity never comes from big budgets, oversized teams, or AI-generated sameness. It comes from conviction, courage, clarity, and genuine excitement for the idea itself. Many of the entries I had the chance to judge showed not only a high level of strategic thinking and craft, but also real cultural relevance and a strong point of view. The best work felt genuinely fresh and unexpected – the kind of work that reminds you why this industry can still be exciting. Adwards has the potential to become an important creative reference point for the Baltic region, both for agencies and clients. Especially if the work itself continues to stay at the centre of the conversation – exactly where it belongs,” notes Adwards jury president Götz Ulmer.
For the first time, the festival presented a special “Creative of the Year” award, which was given to Sintija Popena for the project “Failing at the Finish.” The “Client of the Year” award, recognizing openness and trust in bold ideas, was presented to Tele2. The festival also recognized emerging creative talent. In the previously announced company brief competition, Monta Veronika Jurjāne from Latvia won in two categories, while another category was won by a team from Estonia: Liisa Aaliste, Laes Oskar Raun, and Villem Vesingi.
“Of course, Baltic creativity can be globally strong if we become more aligned and united in our strengths and similarities, rather than our differences,” says Anniken Haldna, CEO of the Estonian Marketing Association (TULI). “Initiatives like Adwards are important because they bring the Baltic countries together and help us present ourselves – both to each other and internationally — as one strong creative region. The future of Baltic marketing depends on collaboration, shared ambition, and stronger international visibility.”
Entries to Adwards were submitted and judged across nine categories: “Film and Audio,” “Print and Outdoor,” “Digital and Social,” “Design,” “Media and Activation,” “Integrated,” “Effectiveness,” “Public Relations,” and “Craft.” All winners received trophies created by one of Latvia’s most internationally recognized designers, Germans Ermičs.
“The festival pleasantly surprised me with its level of maturity and quality. It genuinely didn’t feel like a first-time event, which is a huge achievement. I really hope it continues to grow and thrive, because I believe everyone in the region benefits from stepping outside their own bubble and seeing what others are doing. Since we often face similar challenges and work with similar clients, it’s incredibly valuable to have a place where we can discover different ways of solving regional briefs and problems. It’s exciting to finally have a serious festival for our region,” emphasizes Lithuanian Art Directors’ Club (ADC*LT) director Adomas Jazdauskas.
Based on the cumulative scores of the winning entries, McCann Riga ranked as the top-performing agency, followed by Not Perfect Vilnius and Sons & Daughters (Lithuania).
The festival theme, “Bursting Bubbles,” underscored the importance of stepping beyond familiar ways of thinking and collaborating. Over two days, Adwards became an important platform for knowledge exchange and inspiration for the Baltic creative community, bringing together professionals in advertising, design, and branding from across the Baltics and other European countries.
The festival program featured lectures, panel discussions, and networking events, offering attendees the opportunity to gain insights from world-class experts on the industry’s most pressing topics – from brand identity, cultural influence, and the role of pop culture in communication to the integration of artificial intelligence into creative processes and maintaining originality in an age of content overload. Among the internationally recognized speakers were Götz Ulmer, Erik Kessels, Calvin Innes, Mr Bingo, and João Madeira de Silva. The second day of the festival placed special emphasis on panel discussions, culminating in the awards ceremony celebrating the Baltic region’s most outstanding creative work.
