The University of Nebraska-Lincoln College of Journalism and Mass Communications had a strong presence at the 2021 Nebraska American Advertising Awards on Feb. 18. CoJMC students brought home 12 awards (eight silver and four gold). CoJMC alums Tyler Loebig and Madeline Christensen of the Lincoln-based agency Pixel Bakery were honored by AAF Lincoln as the Ad Rookies of the Year. Pixel Bakery also won a gold award for their client work with "Holly's Healthy Holes" under the category of Consumer Website. Student winners watched the ceremony virtually at a watch party hosted by the college.
Each year, the Nebraska American Advertising Awards recognize the best and brightest ads and campaigns created by Nebraska businesses and advertising agencies. American Advertising Federation Omaha (AAF Omaha) and American Advertising Federation Lincoln (AAF Lincoln) members participate in this prestigious event. Every other year, AAF Omaha hosts the event. The latest information on the Nebraska American Advertising award show can be found here.
Created as an opportunity to recognize and reward creative excellence in the art of advertising, the American Advertising Awards have become the industry’s largest and most respected competition. Simply put, it’s the Oscars of advertising.
Conducted annually by the American Advertising Federation (AAF), the local awards are the first of the three-tier, national competition. In the second tier, local winners compete against other winners in 14 district competitions held concurrently across the country. District winners are then forwarded to the third tier, the American Advertising Awards.
Below is the full list of the CoJMC student winners. The college congratulates these students on their award-winning projects.
College of Journalism and Mass Communications assistant professor of practice Kelli Britten is the president of AAF Lincoln. She organized this year's event, Get the Green Light.
"It's so wonderful to see our students' work get recognized outside the classroom, especially by the industry," Britten said. "These students had to find new ways to to work together to create something award-winning— it is a testament to their commitment, to great work and their resilience."
Gold Nebraska American Advertising Award Winners
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Mackenzie Zaruba, Out-of-Home and Ambient Media, Single Poster, “Nebraska Film Festival”
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Mackenzie Zaruba, Cross-Platform, Integrated Brand Identity Campaign, “Nebraska Film Festival”
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Kyla Jackson, Remy Beauclaire, Rachel Podraza, Haley Jaroszek, Aaliyah Wells-Samci and Marsya Mazrani, Cross-Platform, Consumer Campaign, “NCC: #NoFilter”
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Julia Strilkivsky, Elements of Advertising, Animation or Special Effects, “Do More Good, This Is The Year”
Silver Nebraska American Advertising Award Winners
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Destiney Chitrodom, Silver, Marketing and Sales, Publication Design, “Advertising Case Study”
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Gus Fulton, Silver, Print Advertising, Magazine Advertising, “Arby’s: Some Things Never Change”
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Ad Club, Silver, Out-of-Home and Ambient Media, Poster Campaign, “The Ad Club Experience”
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UNL National Student Advertising Competition Team, Cross-Platform, Consumer Campaign, “Adobe: A New Dawn”
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Matt Sernett, Elements of Advertising, Illustration Campaign, “Creatures”
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Julia Kennedy, Elements of Advertising, Still Photography, “Move Fashion Photography”
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Julia Kennedy, Elements of Advertising, Still Photography, “Tea Vibe: We Know Quality”
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Gus Fulton, Elements of Advertising, Animation or Special Effects, “I’m Afraid We’re All Born Human”
