Digital Arts Awards

DA Expo Ltd on Friday officially launched Malta's first ever Digital Arts Awards to coincide with the Digital Arts Expo 2009 in November.

The awards will celebrate creativity and excellence in a variety of industries, such as advertising, graphic design, printing and signage, audio visual, photography and web. There is also a category for Best Student and a Best of Show award.

With 24 categories covering eight disciplines, the awards promise to set industry standards.

The second annual DA Expo will be held at the Bay Arena, St Julian's, between November 19 and 21.

The advertising agencies category is sponsored by i-Centre, the Apple authorised service providers, and includes four awards: Best Outdoor Campaign Award, Best Advertising Campaign Award, Best 'Client Rejected Artwork' Award, and Best Press Advertising Award.

The graphic design category includes the Best Communication Design Award, Best Illustration Award and Best Branding/Logos and Typefaces Award. There are two awards in the photography category: Best Commercial Photographer Award and Best Digitally Enhanced Photo Award.

The print category, sponsored by Kasco, includes Best Annual Reports Award, Best Book Award, Best Brochures and Flyers Award, Best Calendar Award, and Best Magazine Award.

In the Web category, four awards will be assigned: Best Website (Content + Design), Best Flash Website, Best E-Commerce Enabled Website, and Best Direct Online Advertising.

There are four awards in the audio visual category, sponsored by PBS: Best Radio Commercial, Best Digital Animation, Best TV Commercial, and Best Sound Design Commercial.

The Best Student of the Year Award, sponsored by the Ministry of Education and the European Year of Creativity and Innovation, is open to a student, or a team of students, who demonstrate the best use of interactive work within digital media. The project should have been undertaken as part of a course and is open to anyone in full-time education.

Entries can be in any interactive media, Internet, CD-Rom or DVD and must be accompanied by an introduction from the tutor of the course outlining the degree achievable from the course.

The Grand Prix/Best of Show, sponsored by Computer Arts UK magazine, will select one entry from the winners of the other categories (excluding Best Student), which judges deems outstanding.

International judges will be looking for innovative advertising, flash components or an entire portal, 3D animation, even radio commercial.

Work must have been commercially released before March 31, 2009, and must have been produced in Malta. Work can be entered into multiple categories as separate entries and applications.

Winners will be announced at a gala dinner on November 21 at the CDC Suite, Intercontinental Hotel.

Downloadable awards submission forms are available at www.digitalartsexpo.com. For information call DA Expo Ltd on 2142 2314 or write to info@digitalartsexpo.com.