IDIDTHAT Creative News
The stories shaping our advertising, production and marketing world. We cover the work, the craft, and the humans behind it, without the boring bits. Want us to tell your next story? Let’s talk.
Sanaa Mothabisa makes Loeries history, here’s why the judges chose him and why you should too
Sanaa Films director Sanaa Mothabisa has made history as the first-ever winner of the Loeries Young Directors Award. We get a peek inside the jury room with two of the Loeries judges, take a closer look at the five films that earned him the win and find out what’s next for one of South Africa’s most exciting, and most loved, young directors.
Harry MacKenzie on Heineken’s winning streak, expensive beers and big ideas
From the ideas behind the work to his love of making people laugh, Harry gives us a peek into his creative world, including life with his equally talented new wife, award-winning art director Sohyeon Bang. Turns out there's quite a lot of creative talent under one roof, and no shortage of opinions either.
Coronation explores what trust means today
Ogilvy South Africa and Coronation have launched a new brand campaign that takes a closer look at South Africans’ changing relationship with trust.
IDIDTHAT HOUSE has become the industry’s home at Loeries
Every year, Loeries brings our industry to Cape Town. And in just two years, IDIDTHAT HOUSE has become the place to find each other, catch up properly, meet someone new and remember why we love this industry. Preferably with a drink and chippy in hand.
SHE DID THAT PARTY GALLERY 2026
Our very first SHE DID THAT party and what a way to start. A room full of brilliant women, a whole lot of magic and one very good time. See all the pics.
HOUSE PARTY GALLERY 2026
Our biggest IDIDTHAT HOUSE party yet, across three venues and with one hell of a crowd. The pics are in. Go find yourself (and see what everyone else got up to).
PANEL CHATS GALLERY 2026
Four panels. Two days. Some of the industry’s biggest names talking honestly about the stuff we should all be talking about. See what went down upstairs in the Nedbank Loft. See all the pics.
AT THE HOUSE GALLERY 2026
Two days, one HOUSE and a whole lot of the industry coming and going. Coffees, catch-ups, industry chats, ice creams and familiar faces everywhere. See all the pics from IDIDTHAT HOUSE.
Why big brands are going Bananas
Less than two years in, Bananas is working with Castle Lager, KFC, Heinz and now Truworths. We spoke to the OG Bananas, Saf Sindhi and Justin Gomes about why some very established brands are putting their trust in a very new kind of agency.
Behind Woolworths’ six-part ‘Made in Italy’ Docuseries
Woolworths, in partnership with Big Sky Productions and The Video Cartel, takes us inside the month-long Italian shoot that grew into six half-hour films for M-Net.
Nkgabiseng Motau on ten years of Think Creative Africa and why South African advertising needs to trust itself more
In this one, Nkgabiseng Motau gets into what ten years of running Think Creative Africa has taught her, why courage is often the thing separating Bronze from Gold, the South African work she wishes she’d made, the person who opened an important door early in her career and why our industry could probably do with trusting its own culture a little more. She’s one of our faves and after reading this, we think she’ll be one of yours too.
Open Chair Safety Allies
Loeries Creative Week is around the corner. And we’d all like to celebrate and have a good time without any fear or threat for our safety. Let’s be blunt - no one needs another Veli Ngubane incident.
Why Thembalethu Msibi wants South African advertising to stop translating culture
We sat down with Thembalethu Msibi, Co-Founder and Chief Creative Officer of BlackSwan and Jury President of the 2026 iPendoring Awards, to talk about why South African advertising still treats indigenous language work as an afterthought, and what it will take to change that.
Tshepo Tumahole and Tshepo Mogorosi SAID THAT
Meet Tshepo²: same first name, different disciplines, plenty of creative tension and a shared love of making work that feels really South African. Tshepo Tumahole and Tshepo Mogorosi have been making award-winning work together at Joe Public for almost a decade, first as Copywriter and Art Director, now as Creative Directors. Clearly, pairing two Tshepos was a very good idea.
Dear Advertising
How you Chommie? It’s been a while since we hung out. You, me and a wild idea. Thriving. Just like the old days.
Koketso Masisi SAID THAT
Koketso Masisi has strong views on what makes an idea worth fighting for, as she should, she’s ECD of Retroviral after all. We talk craft, choosing directors, the marketers who make the work better and the South African ad she wishes she’d made. She also gives us the work she’s proudest of, who deserves a shoutout right now, and what’s exciting her about our industry.
Girls in Film South Africa and Blackboard create space for the next generation of filmmakers
Girls in Film South Africa and Blackboard are continuing their commitment to creating greater access to the creative industries through a masterclass programme that brought young creatives into conversation with working filmmakers and industry practitioner
HELLO_COLAB wins Brutal Fruit TV campaign for Africa, new work
HELLO_COLAB has landed Brutal Fruit’s new Africa-wide ‘Pink Table’ campaign, producing a TV commercial, more than 300 images, 24 dedicated social videos, traditional billboards, a 3D billboard and multiple edits for just about every screen you can think of.
Beyond delivery: why the creative industry’s next advantage is in ad operations
One campaign can now mean hundreds of assets, specs, approvals and rights to manage. XR Africa, led by Mike Smit, is helping producers take that complexity off their hands, from delivery and metadata to rights and distribution.
The sound of South African advertising? There’s a good chance Simon Ringrose had something to do with it
Simon Ringrose, aka Sibot, has spent more than two decades shaping the sound of South African advertising through his studio SayThankYou. From scratch DJ and Max Normal to Gold Loeries, Damon Albarn, Mr Eazi and making music from blocks of ice, we caught up with Simon about one seriously interesting career.
Cannes Lions Grand Prix work produced by South African crew
Chances are, you have already heard of Coinbase’s ‘Your Way Out’ ad. It won the Cannes Lions Film Craft Grand Prix, collected five more Lions and has since landed a Primetime Emmy nomination. What you may not have heard is just how much of it was made by South Africans. We go behind the scenes with service company, Gatehouse.
Nothing hits like Extra Cold. Except maybe a snowball.
Castle Lite has taken ‘Nothing hits like Extra Cold’ very literally, making it snow across Nigeria, Tanzania and Mozambique in its latest campaign. Created by Boundless and directed by Darling Films’ Chloe Coetsee, ‘Nothing hits like Extra Cold’ turns that first icy sip into a full-blown bar snowstorm.
Pete Case has seen advertising change a lot. Here’s what hasn’t.
So, what has more than three decades of making work, building agencies and leading creative people taught Pete Case? Quite a lot, as it turns out. We spoke to Pete, CEO & Creative Chairman of Ogilvy South Africa, about why South African creatives travel so well, the ideas that still give him goosebumps, what great marketers get right, protecting humans in the age of AI, surviving an industry full of ‘Nos’, and why you’ll occasionally find one of South Africa’s most powerful advertising leaders in his garage fiddling with a petrol engine.
What the hell did Fausto Becatti feed this Pick n Pay ad?
We caught up with Bioscope director Fausto Becatti and Executive Producer Daniel Kaplan to go behind the scenes of their new ad featuring the Springboks, the one that had us asking, "Woah, is that a Pick n Pay ad?"