Apple’s ‘Barbers’ Ad for the iPhone Wins Top Honors at the ADC Awards

The tech giant’s “Barbers” spot for the iPhone 7 Plus from last May won the ADC Black Cube for Best of Show, with Furlined also winning Production Company of the Year.

ADC’s new tiered price system, designed to allow for more small and mid-sized shops to enter their work, led to a wide range of honors for agencies and studios hailing from 34 countries around the world.

Sweden’s Åkestam Holst, Adweek’s 2017 International Agency of the Year, scored the ADC Boutique Agency of the Year designation, while jurors awarded both top network and Advertising Agency of the Year honors to the far larger BBDO.

Another piece of work that won top marks from jurors was “A Hearing Test in Disguise,” created for Cochlear by agency Che Proximity, production company Revolver and director Will O’Rourke. The video could be interpreted two different ways, based on how much dialogue the viewer’s hearing ability would allow them to detect.

In the clip below, BBDO New York Chief Creative Officer Greg Hahn, chairman of ADC’s Advertising jury, explains why the jury named the “Hearing Test” as Best of Discipline in Advertising.

Hahn’s agency led all single offices in ADC Cubes with 16, and Germany’s Jung Von Matt placed second overall with 15 Cubes.

The winners included both some expected names (McCann’s Fearless Girl) and lesser-known projects like the “Cogy Wheelchair,” created by Tokyo’s TBWA\Hakuhodo and M2 Design in collaboration with Tess Co. and Tohoku University School of Medicine.

The project won both the Best of Innovation and Packing & Product Design designations at last night’s ceremony.

On the media side, The New York Times Magazine was the big winner for its “Why Can’t Democrats Turn the Page” cover story, while the Wired Magazine feature “Fantastic Rum Accelerator” and Kevin Cantrell won for typography.

The event was hosted by designer and Pentagram partner Eddie Opara and sponsored by Shutterstock (additional sponsors included Facebook and Pinterest, among others).

“It’s always an inspiring night when the industry comes together to celebrate the world’s best work in craft, design and innovation,” said ADC Executive Director Michael O’Rourke in a statement. “ADC began as a progressive force in 1920 as the first creative organization for the commercial arts, and it’s an honor to continue that legacy with all of the amazing work awarded tonight.”

See all of this year’s winning work here.