At ADFEST each year, judging processes capture the attention of its attendees – and its organisers. While the ADFEST Lotus Award juries determine the winners of the professional awards, some of the world’s foremost creative leaders are assessing the next generation of international industry leaders in nurturing young creative ambitions in the Young Lotus workshop and up-and-coming filmmakers in the Fabulous Five New Directors.

For ADFEST, promoting the next generation of creators and creative leaders is a vital part of its purpose. ADFEST is proud to announce its 2025 winners.

Launched in 2004, the Young Lotus Workshop is one of the industry’s longest-running mentoring programs for up-and-coming talent. It is designed to give the next generation of advertising leaders hands-on, practical experience involving lectures, mentoring and a creative brief with just 24 hours to deliver.

This year, the Young Lotus Workshop was hosted by Dentsu, under the theme, The Collision of Creativity, Creativity++. The seventeen teams were selected for the program with, for the first time, a team from Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. The workshop was led by Alice Chou and Hitoshi Hamaguchi with Mastercard as the client for the creative brief. Young Lotus participants were tasked to come up with a brand experience and activation campaign that empowers and support the diverse needs group within the APAC region to travel & explore easier.

This year’s Young Lotus winners were the Ho Chi Minh team for their work, “Journey to the DEPTH” by Dat Nguyen Thanh, Manager, and Dung Cao, Art Director, from Dentsu Redder.

Dat Nguyen commented, “For me, the key to impactful ideas lies in reframing the problem - something we learned from the workshop and applied immediately in our brief. Paying close attention during the workshop, absorbing knowledge, and applying it right away really made a difference. Beyond just the professional side, I also hope everyone keeps a positive spirit throughout the competition. Good vibes attract good things. This is the first time I have ever participated in such a big competition, I’m grateful for everything.”

The Young Lotus Popular Vote winners were the Jakarta team for their campaign, “Stay-able” by Kevin Leosujanto, Art Director, and Reyhana Febriola, Junior Copywriter, from Maleo.

Kevin Leosujanto commented, “What an intense but rewarding week. Three days of workshops, meaningful exchanges with talented Young Lotus from across the region, a 24-hour brief, and a nerve-wracking final pitch on a huge stage. The highlight was presenting in front of the industry’s best and seeing the audience connect with our idea - priceless. Truly one of the best moments of my career so far.”

Reyhana Febriola added, “It might sound cliche but I’m truly grateful that I got the chance to be here. Meeting new people around the world plus the workshops that have given becomes a great combo that opens up a new and broader perspectives. During the Young Lotus brief, of course it was a challenging process but knowing that me and my teammate, Kevin made it as one of the finalists, was rewarding. It’s a recognition of hard work and dedication, and it motivates me to continue moving forward for the better. At the same time, it’s a reminder that there’s always more to learn and achieve.”

The Fabulous Five is another program for emerging talents, but specially for up-and-coming directors to give them additional exposure to kick start their directorial career. This year, 5 scripts stood out to the juries from the 26 scripts from 6 cities submitted and the Fabulous Five New Directors took the stage to debut and discuss their short films to the ADFEST 2025 theme, COLLiDE. Two new directors stood above the rest to win the Commendation as voted by the juries and the Popular Vote as voted by the delegates.

This year’s Commendation Winner was Mika Sasaki, Director at TYO Inc., with her short film, “IM PERFECTION”.

Mika commented, “I never imagined receiving such an award, so I am truly honoured. Above all, I would be happy if the message of this short film reaches as many people as possible."

The Popular Vote Winner was Haruna Takahara, Director at HAT, with her short flm, “ICE”.

Haruna commented, “I’m truly honoured to have won the Fabulous Five Popular Vote. I’ll never forget the smiles of the audience I saw from the stage during the screening. Afterwards, I received kind words and praise from people from all over the world. This experience has given me a huge boost in confidence and will definitely support my creative journey moving forward. I also learned a great deal during the production process. Unlike with client-commissioned projects, I got to experience the pure joy of trial and error in pursuit of simply creating a work of which I could be proud. Thank you so much for giving me this invaluable opportunity.”

As in previous years, all Fabulous Five films will be automatically accepted for the Young Director Award (YDA), an award specifically dedicated to rising young directors. As The Short Films for ADFEST 2025 by the Fabulous Five is part of the New Director Award, two additional New Director Lotus winners will also be accepted to YDA. This year, all Fabulous Five Short Films will also be automatically shortlisted for consideration at the Academy Award® and BAFTA qualifying 2025 LA Shorts International Film Festival. LA Shorts Director and Founder, Robert Arentz, will also select one film from the shortlist to screen in-competition at the festival in July 2025.

ADFEST is a not-for profit entity that believes passionately in its role to nurture and support the creative industry in the Asia Pacific and MENA region. It is 1 of only 7 regional creative festivals included in the WARC Creative 100 Rankings, 1 of 12 awards included in the Campaign Brief Asia Rankings, and 1 of 22 awards included in The Drum World Creative Rankings.