The Creative Floor Awards

🏆 Next Creative Floor Awards Deadline: 06 March
📅 Full dates and entry details: https://thecreativefloor.com/awards
Best of luck to everyone entering, and thank you for supporting work that changes careers and lives through our Talent & Diversity Fund.

🗳️ New for 2026: Public Vote categories
Anyone can judge. Literally anyone.
The real question: does our award-winning jury know better than the internet? We’re about to find out.

🔍 Looking for work?
We’ll shout about you. Send us your LinkedIn, portfolio, even a voice note ad if you’re feeling brave. And we'll add it to our next episode.
🆓 Completely free.
📩 [email protected]

📢 Hiring or promoting something useful?
Open roles, services, or opportunities welcome.
👂 Same email. Same ears.

📘 Agency Tales: The Book
Available here 👉 https://awards.thecreativefloor.com/agency-tales

🎙️ G’day 🇦🇺 The Creative Floor Awards heads to Australia

Yes, we’ve gone to the land of Crocodile Dundee, Neighbours, and a shrimp on the barbie. We sat down with Hugh Fitzhardinge (Ward 7), Ryan Wallman (Wellmark), and Tobe Pickford (The Health Army) to shine a spotlight on the Australian healthcare advertising market.

🥊 It might be smaller than some, but historically it’s punched well above its weight.
 This is the country that gave us Dumb Ways to Die, Check Your Date Mate, Meet Graham, and countless campaigns that quietly (and sometimes loudly) changed health comms forever.

🔍 We get behind the famous projects, the lesser-known ones, and the very Australian way of making healthcare work actually land. Hear what’s happening in the market right now, where it’s heading, and what the rest of us could probably steal.

📖 Along the way, the lads share some legendary Australian advertising stories you almost definitely haven’t heard before… worth the listen for those alone.

⚠️ Fair warning: there is a lot of swearing in this episode.
🍺 That might be the beers.
🤷 Or maybe it just doesn’t count as swearing in Australia. Unclear.

🍻 Grab a drink, stick your headphones in, and pretend you’re sat with us down the pub.

Not all awards are created equal.
🔗 Links mentioned in the episode:
Dumb Ways to Die: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IJNR2EpS0jw&list=RDIJNR2EpS0jw&start_radio=1
Meet Graham: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8YyWbOAu6S8
Seat Belt Safety: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-1q4yVA71Xo

🏆 The Creative Floor Awards First Awards Deadline: 06 March
📅 Full dates and entry details are live on the site: https://thecreativefloor.com/awards

Best of luck to everyone entering, and thank you for supporting work that changes careers and lives through our Talent & Diversity Fund.

🗳️ New for 2026: Public Vote categories
Anyone can judge. Literally anyone.The real question is whether our award-winning jury knows better than the internet. We’re about to find out. 

📩 [email protected]

🔍 Looking for work?
We’ll shout about you. LinkedIn, portfolio, even a voice note ad if you’re feeling brave.
🆓 Completely free.
📩 [email protected]

Talent Available for hire 

Award Winning Motion Director, Marcus Kenyon 

👉 https://marcuskenyon.com/

📢 Hiring or promoting something useful?
Open roles, services, or opportunities welcome.
👂 Same email. Same ears.

📘 Agency Tales: The Book
Available here:
👉 https://awards.thecreativefloor.com/agency-tales

🎙️ This episode: From Adland to Netflix

❄️ This week, we head to Chicago (because London clearly isn’t cold enough) to sit down with TJ Cimfel, Chief Creative Officer at Avalere Health. Alongside the day job, TJ has made four feature films. The latest, Don’t Move, launched on Netflix in 2024 and went number one in 68 countries for two weeks. No big deal. So naturally, I asked him to break down exactly how you do that.

🛠️ This episode is a step-by-step guide to getting a feature film made:
 • Getting an agent
 • Selling a script
 • Working with platforms like Netflix, Apple, and Disney
 • What actually matters
 • What’s mostly nonsense
 • How much success comes from smart strategy versus sheer persistence

🚫 No highlight reel. No myth-making. Just the real process.

💡 If you’ve got a film idea sitting quietly in the back of your head and no clue where to start, this episode is for you. Even if you don’t, you’ll want one after this.

📓 Get your notebook out. This one’s unmissable.

⚠️ Light swearing. Parental advisory. You’ve been warned.
 Not all awards are created equal.

🔗 Links mentioned in the episode:
Academy Nicholl Fellowships: https://www.oscars.org/nicholl
The Black List: https://blcklst.com/

TJ’s next film with Mila Kunis and Ridley Scott: https://deadline.com/2026/01/mila-kunis-nightwatching-scott-free-1236691811/

Message TJ: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tjcimfel/ 

⏰ Early Bird Deadline: 06 February
Yes, it’s real. Yes, it’s this Friday.
All key dates and entry details are live on our site.
Best of luck to everyone entering, and thank you for backing work that genuinely changes careers and lives through our Talent & Diversity Fund. Not just shiny trophies. Actual impact. 
👉 https://thecreativefloor.com/awards

🗳️ New for 2026: Public Vote categories
Anyone can judge. Literally anyone with WiFi and an opinion.
The big question: does our award-winning jury know better than the internet?
Bold of us to ask. Let’s find out. 📩 [email protected]

🔍 Looking for work?
We’ll shout about you. Loudly.
LinkedIn. Portfolio. Even a voice note ad if you’re feeling chaotic.
🆓 Completely free. 📩 [email protected]
📢 Hiring or promoting something genuinely useful?
Open roles. Services. Opportunities.
No spam energy. Same inbox. 📩 [email protected]
📘 Agency Tales. The book.
100% of profits go straight into our Talent & Diversity Fund.
👉 https://awards.thecreativefloor.com/agency-tales

🎙️ This episode
This week, we’re heading to Dubai (because apparently everyone else is) to unpack one of the most talked-about healthcare campaigns of the past year.

We sit down with Alok Gadkar, Co-Founder, CEO and Chief Creative Officer of Tuesday, alongside Shamrock Nevis, Senior Creative Director, to break down their bold Harley-Davidson collaboration tackling testicular and prostate cancer awareness in the UAE.
Yes. Really. 🏍️🎶

They brought together a group of real Harley riders to form the Tough Nuts Choir, creating a film that somehow balances comedy with cultural sensitivity in one of the region’s most conservative healthcare categories.

This isn’t your usual case-study fluff. We go full nuts-and-bolts (pun fully intended) on how to write comedy into serious healthcare work. From creative strategy and client buy-in to execution in a conservative market, Alok and Shamrock walk through exactly how they made it work, and how your team can steal the process.

💡 Described as a free masterclass for agencies, this episode offers rare, practical insight into healthcare creativity you genuinely won’t hear anywhere else.

🔗 Watch the Tough Nuts Choir film:
https://www.instagram.com/reels/DRKOE4_Eshg/

⏰ Early Bird Deadline: 06 February
📅 Full dates are live on the site. Best of luck to everyone entering, and thank you for supporting work that changes careers and lives through our Talent & Diversity Fund.
💡 Got a genuinely life-changing idea? Fund pitches close 31 January.

🗳️ New for 2026: Public Vote categories
Anyone can judge. Literally anyone.
🤔 The big question: does our award-winning jury know better than the internet?
👀 We’re about to find out.

🔍 Looking for work?
📣 We’ll shout about you. LinkedIn, portfolio, even a voice note ad if you’re feeling brave.
🆓 Completely free.
📩 Email: [email protected]

📢 Hiring or promoting something useful?
Open roles, services, opportunities?
👂 Same email. Same ears.

📘 Agency Tales, our new book is out now on Amazon. Find your local link here:
 👉 https://awards.thecreativefloor.com/agency-tales

🎙️ This episode
Today we’re talking to Paul Burke. Writer. Producer. Director. Radio advertising legend. The kind of legend where people say, “Oh… Paul Burke?” and nod seriously. Paul has won more awards for radio ads than anyone else in the world. Ever. He’s also directed hundreds of actors, including Benedict Cumberbatch, Rowan Atkinson, Joanna Lumley, and David Tennant. Just a normal Tuesday. Paul’s been on the podcast before sharing some excellent agency war stories. This time, we dig into his journey from dispatch rider to writer at Abbott Mead Vickers. If you’re trying to break into a creative department, pay attention. These lessons are still painfully relevant. If you’re new to the industry or working outside the UK, you’ll love this one. Paul also shares stories and lessons from some of advertising’s greats, including David Abbott, Peter Mead, Richard Foster, John Horton, and Chris O’Shea.

⚠️ Light swearing. Parental advisory. You have been warned.

📖 Paul’s articles in The Spectator
👉 https://spectator.com/writer/paul-burke/

🎧 Paul’s work
👉 https://www.paulburkecreative.com/
#NotAllAwardsAreCreatedEqual

🎉 Season 8 is here. Happy 2026. Brace yourselves.
🏆 The Creative Floor Awards are officially open.
⏰ Early Bird Deadline: 06 February
📅 Full entry dates and details:
👉 https://thecreativefloor.com/awards

🍀 Best of luck to everyone entering, and thank you for supporting work that changes careers and lives through our Talent & Diversity Fund.

💡 Got a life-changing idea?
 🚨 Fund pitches close 30 January
👉 https://thecreativefloor.com/awards

🗳️ New for 2026: Public Vote categories.
Anyone can judge. Yes, that includes you.

🔍 Looking for work?
📣 Share your LinkedIn or portfolio and we’ll shout about you in future podcast episodes.
🆓 Free.
📩 [email protected]

📢 Hiring or promoting something useful?
Open roles, services, or opportunities welcome.
👂 Same ears.
📩 [email protected]

📘 Agency Tales, our new book, is out now on Amazon.
🌍 Find your local link here:
👉 https://awards.thecreativefloor.com/agency-tales

🎙️ This episode
We break down what actually happened in 2025 and what’s really coming in 2026 with Tim Jones (Klick Health) and John McPartland (Ogilvy Health), co-founders of Creative Rounds.

🔥 If LinkedIn feels like a bin fire of gloom, this is the unfiltered version.
 🤖 AI in real agency life
 💼 What clients are actually buying
 📈 Where growth is coming from
 🎨 What creative departments might look like next

⚠️ Light swearing. Parental advisory. You’ve been warned.

#NotAllAwardsAreCreatedEqual

This week our industry was shaken by nearly 4,000 layoffs, and in response we have released a special emergency episode of The Creative Floor Awards Podcast.

From the emotional shock of losing a job to the anxiety, fear, anger and confusion that follow, this episode breaks the silence around what layoffs really feel like. It offers practical coping techniques, ways to regain structure, advice on protecting your energy and a reminder that even though it may not feel like it today, this moment can eventually become a turning point.

If you have been affected, or you are supporting someone who has, this episode is for you.
You are not alone. 

#NotAllAwardsAreCreatedEqual

This week we’re joined by none other than Ben Kay - podcaster, blogger, novelist, Creative Review contributor, ex-Creative Director at Apple, Droga5, AMV, Luna BBDO etc… basically, a walking awards cabinet. 🏆

Ben’s dipped his toes into the world of pharma advertising and shares his observations. In this episode, Ben breaks down what healthcare marketing can borrow from the fruit-shaped tech giants in Cupertino (spoiler: it’s not just clean design and turtle-necked presentations).

💡 What to expect:
 🍎 Apple-level creative thinking
 💊 Pharma truths with a twist
 🙃 Advice you’ll actually use
 🎤 One or two mic drops. Maybe more...

#NotAllAwardsAreCreatedEqual

This week, we sit down with the Joe Rogan of advertising himself - Dave Dye. One of the most awarded creatives, a blogging Jedi and the kind of podcaster who probably has a mic built into his soul.
We cover everything from:
 🧙‍♂️ What David Abbott could do with a banner ad (yes, really)
 🙌 The legends he looks up to
 🪄 What it was like having David Abbott freelancing for him
 🔮 And where he thinks the future of advertising is heading (brace yourself).

 #NotAllAwardsAreCreatedEqual

🚨 Links from this podcast you’ll actually want to click (we know, shocking.)

🏆 2025 Awards THIS IS IT... FINAL CALL THIS FRIDAY 25th April
If you thrive on last-minute pressure and questionable life choices, this is your time to shine. 👉 https://thecreativefloor.com/awards

📚 Masterclass: Want to level up your creative game?
Think of this as your creative cheat code no Konami moves, just actual results 👉 https://awards.thecreativefloor.com/masterclass
💥 💥 BOOM CGI: Because even your ideas deserve to look award winning 👉 https://boomcgi.com/
✨ David Abbott brilliance, served fresh:

🧠 The BT Pitch. A masterclass in clarity, charm, and how to win hearts before budgets:
👉 https://davedye.com/2019/04/11/pitch-david-abbott-bt/ 📞💬💡
🚗 The VW Pitch. Proof that wit, insight, and a well-placed headline can move more than just cars 👉 https://davedye.com/2013/11/29/abbo/ 🪄📰🚘
📚 More creative gold from Dave Dye’s blog. Bookmark it, binge it, bow down:
👉 https://davedye.com/ 🧙‍♂️🔥🎯

Because why just run one of the world’s top creative award shows when you can also hijack someone else’s podcast and spill all the secrets?

In this juicy behind-the-scenes chat with our friends at Naked Voice, we reveal:

🕵️‍♂️ What it really takes to run an awards show (hint: coffee, chaos and mild existential dread)
 🏆 How we accidentally became the World’s No.1 Marketing Podcast
 🧠 How we created our brand new Masterclass
 💣 And for the first time ever… a hack to win a TCF Award (yes, really we went there)

Hosts with the mosts:
 💥 Lee Williams
 🎤 Max Jackson
 🔥 Raj Jangra
 👑 Russell Kirk

🚨 Links You’ll Actually Want to Click (We know, shocking.)

🏆 2025 Awards FINAL CALL: Friday 25th April
 If you thrive on last-minute pressure and questionable life choices, this is your time to shine. 👉 https://thecreativefloor.com/awards

📚 Masterclass: Want to level up your creative game?
 Think of this as your creative cheat code no Konami moves, just actual results. 👉 https://awards.thecreativefloor.com/masterclass

💋 For sexy sound waves, follow the Naked Voice Podcast 👉 https://nkdhealth.com/podcasts

Last year we launched our  inaugural Hall of Legends Award… because why just win awards when you can be immortal? 🏆👑 So this week, we’re diving headfirst into legacy. What is it? Do you need one? Is it just for billionaires and Bond villains? And most importantly, how do you build one without spontaneously combusting from burnout?
Helping us unpack this Big Existential Energy are two legends in the making:
 💥 Tom Richards, Global CCO of 21GRAMS
 💥 Frank Mazzola, Managing Founder of 21GRAMS

If you’ve ever dreamed of being the Charles Saatchi of our generation (minus the ‘mood swings’), plug in, press play and maybe take some notes. Your legacy isn’t going to build itself.
#NotAllAwardsAreCreatedEqual

🚨Show Notes & Deadlines (we know you usually skip this bit, but this time it might actually help you look clever.)

🏆 2025 Awards FINAL CALL – FRIDAY 25th APRIL
Due to overwhelming demand (and more chocolate-based bribery than we care to admit), we’ve caved and issued one last deadline extension. 👉 Full details: https://thecreativefloor.com/awards

 📚 Masterclass: Want to make world-class advertising? We’ve basically got the cheat codes, minus the 3am existential crisis and sad desk lunches. 🎮✨ 👉 https://awards.thecreativefloor.com/masterclass
💥 💥 BOOM CGI: Turning your “this might be too weird” ideas into award-baiting visual gold. Because why look cheap when you can look Hollywood? 👉 https://boomcgi.com/

Need to plug a job or service? Hit us up at [email protected]. We definitely read our emails (unless there’s cake in the kitchen). 🎤🔥
🎤 21Grams work referenced in todays conversation: https://www.adforum.com/creative-work/ad/player/34697876/tokking-their-language/hemlibra