M-NET VUKA! AWARDS 2010

Entries close on October 1 for prestigious award.

The prestigious M-Net VUKA! Awards return in 2010 with a heart-rending theme – Art in Heart. M-Net is calling for entries to the continent’s leading Public Service Announcement (PSA) contest with a rallying cry to creatives to “Donate a TV ad”.

The VUKA! Awards were introduced in 1999 by MultiChoice as a platform to reward and nurture South Africa's filmmaking talent while providing vital exposure to social causes and charities via Public Service Announcements (PSA’s).

The “Contenders” category, new to last year’s awards, returns in 2010. Last year’s winners Taryn Scher and Renier Zandberg of Ogilvy recently returned from their mind-extending trip to Cannes to participate in the Young Lions contest, where they hung out with international superstars of the advertising world and put themselves to the test against other talented young creatives from around the world. The “Contenders” is for new professionals aged 20-28 who are not yet fully established in the industry. Through an exciting partnership with Cinemark, the winners of the Contenders category again win automatic entry to the prestigious Cannes Young Lions competition in 2011, including flights, accommodation and spending money from M-Net. Both M-Net and Cinemark are proud to be able to support young creatives through VUKA! and the Contenders category.

The M-Net VUKA! Hall of Fame, the permanent installation at M-Net’s Randburg offices which honours past winners with a display of tapestries and a video loop of their work, grew by one last year when the Young & Rubicam Cape Town & Blue Panther Films collaboration Conflict Diamonds scooped the overall Best PSA prize.

All overall winners will claim a spot in this gallery of luminary creatives for years to come. Koo Govender, Director: Corporate & Marketing Communications at M-Net says we can’t wait to see what the country’s most talented creatives come up with in 2010. “Last year’s entries for the M-Net VUKA! Awards were of an incredibly high standard and we’re sure that this year’s inspirational call to entry campaign will encourage SA’s creatives to do even better,” she says.

Entries close on October 1, with more information about submission requirements available at http://vuka.mnet.co.za or on 011 804 2552 or vuka@thebomb.co.za. The Top 30% of PSA’s selected by the judges will have their work broadcast on the M-Net channels on DStv and also in cinemas nationwide.

The M-Net VUKA! Awards form part of M-Net’s CSI strategy, under the M-Net Cares banner.