On September 12, the international creative industry festival Ad Black Sea 2026 concluded in Batumi with its closing and awards ceremony. The festival’s 10th anniversary edition once again brought together leading figures from Georgia and the international creative industry, including agency executives, creative directors, marketers, designers, content creators and technology professionals.
Competition entries were judged across 13 main categories, including branding, design, digital communication and film. More than 30 international experts from over 20 countries evaluated the submitted work.
The Ad Black Sea 2026 Grand Prix awards went to Playmakers and Windfor’s Tbilisi.
Another special award, Creative Effort in Gender Equality, was presented to Legacy Experience Agency for its project “Marionela 18+.” The campaign, which addresses the issue of child marriage, was recognized across several categories at this year’s festival.
The Gold winners of Ad Black Sea 2026 were:
- Advertising Campaigns: “Humanity Chain” | Progression CA, Kazakhstan
- Brand Experience & Activation: “The light must stay on” | Windfor’s Tbilisi, Georgia; “Small Business Chain” | Supermarket, Georgia
- Creative Effectiveness: “Prescription: The Truth” | Playmakers, Georgia
- Creative Strategy: “Prescription: The Truth” | Playmakers, Georgia
- Design & Branding: “The light must stay on” | Windfor’s Tbilisi, Georgia; “Marionela 18+” | Legacy Experience Agency, Georgia
- Film: “Dreaming Past the Junkyard” | Betterfly, Georgia
- Film Craft: “Dreaming Past the Junkyard” | Betterfly, Georgia; “What does it take to win?” | Advan Production, Georgia; “Sukhishvili: 80 Years of Triumph” | JoyBoy, Georgia
- Media: “The light must stay on” | Windfor’s Tbilisi, Georgia; “Marionela 18+” | Legacy Experience Agency, Georgia
- Out of Home: “Humanity Chain” | Progression CA, Kazakhstan; “The light must stay on” | Windfor’s Tbilisi, Georgia
- Young Creative | Powered by TBC Anastasia Bezhitadze for Flags of Victory | Holy Motors, Georgia
For the second consecutive year, winning projects will also be included in The One Club Global Creative Rankings, giving work produced in the region greater visibility within the international creative industry.
The central theme of Ad Black Sea’s 10th anniversary edition was ON THE EDGE: Festival of Creative Resistance. The concept explored creativity as a force that thrives at the edge and as a form of professional resistance at a time when the industry is undergoing rapid technological and cultural transformation.
The festival’s main stage featured some of the most prominent voices in the global creative industry, including David Droga, Vice Chairman of Accenture and founder of Droga5; Cindy Gallop, founder and CEO of MakeLoveNotPorn; Natasha Jen, Partner at Pentagram New York; Mihnea Gheorghiu, Global Chief Creative Officer at Le Pub; Catalin Dobre, Chief Creative Officer and Co-CEO of McCann Worldgroup Romania; and visual artist and creative technologist Johanna Jaskowska.
Their talks explored creative leadership, design, technology, culture and the transformation of the modern communications industry. Throughout the programme, participants had the opportunity to hear a range of international perspectives, exchange professional experience and build new connections across the regional and global creative community.
This year also marked the second edition of the Creator Stage, a dedicated platform for content creators and influencers. Speakers shared their professional experiences, practical knowledge and perspectives on the changes currently reshaping the industry.
The festival’s 10th anniversary marked another major milestone in Ad Black Sea’s decade-long development. Over the past ten years, the festival has hosted 290 jury members from more than 40 countries, 283 speakers from nearly 40 countries, 4,872 competition entries and 7,135 delegates, establishing itself as one of the region’s leading professional platforms for the creative industry.
Ad Black Sea 2026 concluded on September 12 at the Sheraton Batumi Hotel.
