UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Three separate videos produced by Penn State students earned six awards in three different categories as part of the Communicator Awards, a competition that attracts more than 3,000 entries from around the world and ranks as the most competitive awards program honoring creative excellence for communications professionals.
Students in CommAgency, created videos for on-campus clients with the high-quality work serving those communications needs and earning respect from Communicator Award judges.
The productions by students won awards in separate divisions for educational institutions, for students, and for diversity, equity and inclusion. Specific work honored was:
- “Curating Black Visual Culture: The Making of an Exhibition,” a short behind-the-scenes documentary for the Special Collections Library at Penn State. It was honored with Communicator Awards for general-educational institutions (excellence), general-student (excellence), and diversity, equity and inclusion (distinction).
- “Nittany Lion Consulting Group,” an informational video about the group housed in the Smeal College of Business. It was honored in general-educational institutions (excellence) and general-student category (distinction).
- “The Learning Factory Time Machine” was part of resources to attract potential project sponsors for the effort housed in the College of Engineering. The video earned Communicator Awards distinction in the general-educational institutions and general-student divisions.
“It’s proof of the high-quality work by our students that their award submissions did so well in a competition against professionals from all over the world,” said Catie Grant, the faculty director of CommAgency and an assistant teaching professor in the Donald P. Bellisario College of Communications. “Our students are committed to serving clients and their professionalism and work ethic shines through every day. It’s a bonus to see it honored in this way as well.”
The 30th Annual Communicator Awards, sanctioned and judged by the Academy of Interactive and Visual Arts, received over entries from ad agencies, digital agencies, production firms, in-house creative and communications professionals, graphic designers, design firms, and public relations firms.
In determining winners, entries were reviewed on their merits against a standard of excellence considering the category entered. A category may have multiple winners, or none. Entries are scored on a 100-point scale by the jurors. Generally, excellence winners receive a score of 90 or above and distinction winners receive a score of 70 to 89.
CommAgency, a student-driven creative agency housed in Bellisario College, creates high-quality, low-cost media for Penn State clients, local nonprofit organizations and start-ups. It gives students real-world experience working with professional equipment and real-life clients.