Established in 1920, the ADC Annual Awards are the longest continually running global advertising and design awards show honoring the very best in craft, design and innovation.  Originally launched by the Art Directors Club, the awards are now part of The One Club for Creativity, the world’s foremost non-profit organization celebrating creative excellence in advertising and design, formed out of the 2016 merger of ADC and The One Club.

ADC Annual Awards features a tiered pricing structure designed to make it easier for smaller agencies, studios and freelancers to participate. Companies with 21 or more employees pay the standard entry fee; smaller shops with from 2 to 20 employees get a discount on entries (amount varies by discipline) and freelance creatives and one-person shops are eligible for an even greater reduction in their entry fee.

“The goal of the ADC Annual Awards is to identify and celebrate the absolute best in craft, design and innovation from around the world, regardless of how large or small the agency or studio might be,” said Michael O’Rourke, executive director, ADC, part of The One Club for Creativity. “Our tiered pricing helps to level the playing field, making it easier for smaller shops and freelancers to get their works judged by an all-star jury and potentially elevated on a global stage.”

ADC Annual Awards includes:

• ADC Design for Good award for excellence in work that fosters societal or political change. This reduced-fee subcategory exists within each of the categories, with the winner selected from among the top vote getting Design for Good entries in each category.
• Once each jury has selected its ADC Gold, Silver and Bronze Cube winners, they will choose which Gold Cube winner stands out to receive an ADC Best in Discipline award.
• The ADC Black Cube is given to represent the Best in Show overall.
• Freelancers can now enter for their contribution to a campaign or project created by an agency. For example, a self-employed illustrator can now enter their work in the Design-Illustration category for illustrations they here hired to do by an agency for a brand’s print ad campaign.

Established in 1920, the ADC Annual Awards are the longest continually running global advertising and design awards show honoring the very best in craft, design and innovation.