I often wonder how people view New Zealand. 

When I was younger our USP was that we had 20 sheep for every New Zealander. (Tragically this has now dropped to seven sheep per New Zealander.)

Fortunately, we have found a new USP – creativity. Thanks to the likes of (film director) Peter Jackson and (visual effects company for Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit) Weta Digital, New Zealand is now seen as a country that punches well above our weight in the can-do-cool-stuff department. 

But creativity in film is only a small area of the New Zealand ideas industry and local advertising agency businesses have had their moments to shine too. New Zealand agencies rank highly at events like Cannes, D&AD and One Show – with one Kiwi agency taking the number one spot in the world for creativity in the 2013 Big Won Report, not bad for such a small (4.5 million) population!

The healthcare genre is not immune to the creativity bug either and although our budgets may not be as large or the resources as lush, good work still rises to the surface. 

Here are some of my favourite pieces of work that stand head and shoulders above the classic hands in the air, quality-of-life campaigns (thanks Ben):

The Depression Initiative – New Zealand Ministry of Health

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Agency: DraftFCB 

Based on a long-term collaboration between DraftFCB and the New Zealand Ministry of Health, this campaign uses a tough-as-nails All Black to change the way we view depression and it’s treatment. Yes, it has a big budget and a big rugby star, but it also has won numerous awards since its start in 2006 and is a case study for how to do a successful social change campaign.

NovoMix – Novo Nordisk

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Agency: Ward 6

How often are we asked to communicate messages that are very… well… practical. However, the simple human truth is that we all like looking at nice things – physicians are no different. This ad does just that, dressing up a functional message in an eye-catching, appealing image – with excellent use of crafted type.

Dukoral – Sanofi

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Agency: INSIGHT NZ

I know I shouldn’t be commenting on my own agency’s work. But this is a good example of a great product, brave client and simple creative – and it won a Global Award to boot.