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#Loeries2017: Jury president jabber with Markus Maczey
This year’s four international jury presidents for the Loeries will head up key jury panels as well as speak at the much-anticipated DStv Seminar of Creativity.
![Markus Maczey, CCO of the Plan.Net Group and president of the 2017 Loeries’ digital and interactive judging panel.](https://biz-file.com/c/1706/395848.jpg)
After more than a decade as a designer and art director in traditional advertising agencies like Jung von Matt and .start, Maczey joined the Serviceplan Group as an executive digital creative director in 2008, and in 2016 he was named CCO of the Plan.Net Group based in Munich, Germany, where he oversees the creative output of the national and international offices.
Maczey’s work has been recognised at the top global advertising awards: Cannes Lions, D&AD, LIA, Eurobest, Webby and more.
As a result, Maczey is excited to head up the 2017 Loeries’ digital and interactive judging panel as he feels:
Development of the creative industry in Africa and the Middle East is remarkable.I chatted to him about his judging expectations, how he’s preparing himself for the task of judging the best work from Africa and the Middle East and the importance of this year’s Loeries’ theme: simply judging the work…
Congratulations on making the jury! What does this mean to you personally in terms of your career?
Wow, it means a lot to me. I feel very honoured to be selected not just for the jury but to be a jury president. It’s great and I’m looking so forward to this! It will also be a big point in my career, and I hope I’ll meet the expectations.
We're sure you will. What are you most looking forward to from the 2017 Loeries’ judging experience?
As I said, I believe the standard of the African and Middle-Eastern creativity is extremely high. So I hope to see a lot of fresh and highly creative cases that might not have been seen in the big global award shows. And – of course – having a lot of fruitful discussions around them. I mean, the best our small, worldwide creative community can do is to collaborate with each other and get inspiration from all over the world; to get out of ‘the box’.
What’s the biggest trend in your specific advertising category that you expect to see from this year’s entries?
Technology, storytelling, craft and the combination of those. These days, we have so many new possibilities to be creative and there are so many new ways of telling a story. We’re in a time where we can redefine creativity in advertising through technology, new platforms or human behaviours. It’s a really exciting time, so I hope to be overwhelmed by the new solutions that have been found for conventional briefings.
What are you most looking forward to from the Loeries’ experience, once the judging is over?
I can’t say… simply because I expect the unexpected!
Here’s hoping we exceed those expectations! Remember that ticket sales are now open for Loeries Creative Week Durban, taking place from 14 to 21 August 2017. Keep an eye on our Loeries special section for the latest updates.
![Leigh Andrews](https://biz-file.com/b/2205/420928-140x187.png?5)
About Leigh Andrews
Leigh Andrews AKA the #MilkshakeQueen, is former Editor-in-Chief: Marketing & Media at Bizcommunity.com, with a passion for issues of diversity, inclusion and equality, and of course, gourmet food and drinks! She can be reached on Twitter at @Leigh_Andrews.![](/res/img/s.gif)