Competition Regulations 

1. Submission Procedure, Costs, and Categories

1.1. Submission Criteria

• The ADWARDS Baltic Festival of Creative Excellence is open to any creative work that fits the festival categories and was realized within the specified time period.

• By registering, contestants confirm they have read and agreed to these regulations.

• Only realized works qualify; concepts and ideas will not be evaluated.

• Works that have been submitted in any previous ADWARDS festival are not eligible for re-submission.

• Eligibility Period: Works must have been realized between 1/03/2025-1/05/2026.

• Submission Platform: Works must be submitted via ONE CLUB AWARD HUB ENTRY JUDGING RESOURCES (ONLINE SYSTEM); entries via email or social media are not accepted.

• Multiple Entries: Works eligible for multiple categories must be submitted as separate entries for each category.

• Regional Scope: Works must be created in Latvia, Lithuania, or Estonia, or under the leadership of authors from these countries and implemented in the territories of these countries.

• Both physical and legal entities may participate.

2. Submission Costs and Fees (2026)

2.1. Work Submission Fees

The submission fees for 2026 are determined by the submission phase and membership status:

Campaigns: A comprehensive project involving multiple media channels or a wide range of different creative executions for a single brief.

Singles & Series: A single creative execution (e.g., one film, one poster) or a series of up to three related executions within the same medium (e.g., three key visuals, three radio spots).

2.2. Incentives & Membership

• Submission Bonus: For every 5 submitted works, you will receive two Ceremony Only Tickets as a gift.

• Young Creative: Submissions in the "Young Creative" category cost 30 EUR.

• Members of the Latvian, Lithuanian, and Estonian advertising clubs are eligible for member prices for all work submissions and festival tickets.

2.3. Payment Terms

• After submission and confirmation on the platform, the "Latvian Art Directors Club" prepares an invoice sent to the email provided.

• Online payment is not available.

• Entries for which payment has not been received until the beginning of the judging period will not be evaluated14.
  
  
  

3. Categories

1 AUDIO AND VIDEO

1.1 TV, Cinema Commercials

1.2 Online Videos

1.3 Audio, radio Commercials

1.4 Film & Audio for non-profit, public service, NGO

2 PRESS AND ENVIRONMENTAL ADVERTISING

2.1 Outdoor

2.2 Digital Screens – Non-static outdoor advertising

2.3 Special Outdoor (Ambient, experiential, outdoor installations)

2.4 Print & Outdoor for nonprofit, public service, NGO

3 ONLINE AND DIGITAL SOLUTIONS

3.1 Websites

3.2 Digital campaigns

3.3 Place-specific digital experiences Experiences)

3.4 Social Media Communication

3.5 Use of influencers

4 DESIGN

4.1 Graphic Communication (Poster, Promotional Item, Integrated Graphics, Data Visualization)

4.2 Editorial Design (Book, Magazine, Corporate Publication, Annual Reports)

4.3 Corporate Brand Identity

4.4 Rebranding

4.5 Packaging

4.6 Typography

4.7 Spatial Design

5 BRAND EXPERIENCE

5.1 Point of Sale Experience and Activation

5.2 Promotions

5.3 Live Stunts Brand Activation

5.4 New Use of Media

5.5 Branded Spaces

6 INTEGRATED CAMPAIGNS AND INNOVATION

6.1 Integrated Campaigns for commercial brands

6.2 Integrated and Innovation for non-profit,public service, NGO

6.3 Branded Content

6.4 Best Use of Technology & Data

6.5 Product, service Innovation

7 CREATIVE BUSINESS EXCELLENCE

7.1 Creative effectiveness for products and services

7.2 Creative effectiveness - corporate social responsibility, charity, social advertising

7.3 Creative strategy - products and services

7.4 Creative strategy - corporate social responsibility, charity, social advertising charity, social advertising

8 PUBLIC RELATIONS

8.1 Corporate communication and reputation

8.2 Corporate social responsibility and sustainability

8.3 Consumer relations

8.4 Conflict and crisis communication

8.5 Internal communication & employer branding

8.6 Public sector & Social campaigns

8.7 Events & Experiential Marketing

8.8 Visual Communication

8.9 Storytelling

8.10 Sponsorship

9 ARTISTIC PERFORMANCE

9.1 TV, Cinema, Online Commercials

9.2 Craft - Direction, cinematography and editing

9.3 Craft - Music and sound

9.4 Craft - Animation, VFX, CGI and 3D

9.5 Craft - Photography

9.6 Craft - Illustration

9.7 Music Video

10 SPECIAL AWARDS

10.1 Agency of the year - Estonia

10.2 Agency of the year - Lithuania

10.3 Agency of the year - Latvia

10.4 Baltic agency of the year

10.5 Young creative

10.6 Creative director of the year

10.7 Art director of the year

10.8 Client of the year

4. Technical Specifications

• Video: Uploaded via a streaming platform link; videos must not contain information about the submitter to ensure anonymity.

• Images: Up to 8 images per entry. Max file size 5MB.

• Case Board: 16:9 aspect ratio, up to 20MB.

• Physical Samples: Required only for Shortlisted works. Must be sent in transport-friendly packaging with the entry number.

5. Evaluation & Scoring

Jury and Evaluation Process

• Jury Composition: Works are evaluated by an international jury divided into three specialized groups.

• Baltic Representation: Each group consists of 7 members, ensuring balanced regional representation by including 3 members from each Baltic country (Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia).

• Conflict of Interest: To ensure objectivity, any jury member linked to a submitting agency, part of the same agency network, or credited as an author of a submitted work is prohibited from judging that specific submission.

• Jury Leadership: Each group is led by a Jury President who oversees the evaluation process; the President holds a tie-breaking "double vote" specifically for Grand Prix determinations.

• Scoring: Points are awarded as follows:

• Shortlist: 0.5 points

• Bronze: 3 points

• Silver: 5 points

• Gold: 10 points

• Grand Prix: 20 points

• If a work wins a medal, the Shortlist point is added to the total (e.g., Gold = 10.5 points).

• The submitter with the highest total points earns the "Baltic Agency of the Year" title.

Young Creative

• Definition: To ensure fairness and diversity in the competition, this category adheres to the "One Agency One Brief" principle.

• Application: An agency and or individual group/freelancers may submit only one entry per specific client brief in a Young Creative category.

• Purpose: This prevents a single agency from saturating a category with multiple variations of the same project, ensuring the jury evaluates the agency's best single solution for that specific challenge.

6. Festival Ticket Prices (2026)

7. Other Terms

• Copyright: All parties involved (client, executor) must agree on authorship and the award recipient prior to submission.

• Partner Awards: Special nominations and awards from cooperation partners may also be presented during the festival.

• Amendments: The festival organizers, the association "Latvian Art Directors Club," reserve the right to change or supplement the "ADWARDS" regulations as needed.