IDIDTHAT JUDGE
CATHERINE WANLISS

Catherine is a strategically-minded, obsessive-compulsive crafter with a penchant for insightful, first-of-their-kind, category-challenging ideas. Ideas that solve problems, tell stories, influence behaviour, shape culture, sell the product or brand, and are genuinely noticed and loved by the people they’re aimed at. With over 25 years’ experience – 10 of which have been as an integrated creative lead – Catherine has won awards across social, digital, film, branded entertainment, radio, print, outdoor, direct marketing, graphic design, integrated campaign, craft, purpose-driven marketing, data-enhanced creativity, media innovation, and effectiveness categories, but is most proud of moments like:

• Putting tracking devices onto four babies so they could be part of the world’s first 21km baby marathon, in order to prove the need for a comfy diaper.
• Receiving South Africa and the Middle East’s first film grand prix for social content. And then being awarded an effectiveness grand prix for the same piece of work.
• Leading the agency team who helped take Huggies – one of the brands in her care – to the number one spot in the country for the first time ever in the brand’s history.
• Leading the campaign that unearthed South Africa’s first ever Black graduate back in the 1800s, along with a number of other incredible intellectuals of colour, all of whom had purposely been edited out of the mainstream history narrative.

Yup, Catherine believes that crazy-fearless creativity can change the world for the better, so this is what she pursues every single day. She also believes that cake should be moist. This she pursues – apron-clad and wooden spoon-wielding – with a vengeance over weekends, much to her husband and 7-year-old daughter’s delight.

I DID THAT CRAFT AWARDS
Judge’s Pick – Catherine Wanliss

JUDGES COMMENT ON DIRECTION
“So pleased to have an opportunity to say this: craft matters. The detail we put into the work we make for our clients’ brands is extremely important. Craft isn’t us indulging in making beautiful ‘art’, or an inability to understand leaner budgets and tighter deadlines. Quite the contrary. It’s us using our talent and expertise to help brands connect powerfully with their target markets and ultimately sell stuff. In a world where every second person is a content creator, craft is what sets our professional offering apart, what makes our fees worthwhile.

On that note, I loved Zee’s treatment for KFC ‘Festive’ – the two different grades; one giving off a cool urban frisson, the other hot family-December vibes. This, coupled with the immersive sound treatment and the beautiful overlapping collage of the two worlds, made me feel like I was getting to experience somebody else’s emotions and memories. I also loved the way the performances were handled. There are lots of subtle details that could’ve been left out, but are actually what make the piece for me: ‘Are those tattoos?’ (loved that), the protagonist holding that look into camera at the end, and the woman on the right pulling those faces we all pull whilst waiting for a photo to be taken. Very nice.”

AWARDED
10 March 2026

I DID THAT CRAFT AWARDS
Judge’s Pick – Catherine Wanliss

JUDGES COMMENT ON EDITING
“Some deft editing by Shelby on this particular piece. There were quite a lot of set-ups (and probably many great performances from the lead), yet somehow he managed to stitch them all together into a seamless narrative that felt well-paced, effortless and enjoyable.”

AWARDED
10 March 2026

I DID THAT CRAFT AWARDS
Judge’s Pick – Catherine Wanliss

JUDGES COMMENT ON DIRECTION
“I really enjoyed how Retang handled the Handy Andy campaign. Good character casting without becoming caricatured; a lovely comedic performance with great, nuanced moments (I loved the double take on the shower door); well-shot and integrated product usage; and an appropriate grade that didn’t make the comedy feel garish. The choice of narrator and music finished it off nicely. Well done.”

AWARDED
10 March 2026