After 12 days of celebration, Sunday 31 October brought the Australian Event Awards to a close. Embracing the resilience of individuals and organisations throughout the industry, the AEA put on a virtual online ceremony in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic.
You may have caught the short broadcasts drip-fed to the public via the AEA YouTube channel between 20-31 October 2021, announcing the Finalists and Winner of each category. The videos are still available on the AEA YouTube channel here.
Sunday night saw Rizer crowned as Management Organisation of the Year, with their efforts lauded by judges. We also saw EY Secrets of the Archibald (Jack Morton Australia) nab the top spot as Australian Event of the Year 2021, described by one client as “one of the best virtual events I have attended”.
Notably, produced by the Northern Territory Major Events Company Parrtjima, A Festival in Light 2021 was not only named as a finalist in a whopping four categories, but bagged the top spot in two of those categories.
The AEA 2021 Finalists were made up of almost 100 events and organisations in the industry, celebrating incredible accomplishments across the board. While we can’t name them all here, head over to the AEA website to check out the full list: https://eventawards.com.au/results/
Brenda LaPorte, Co-Chair of the Judging Panel, sparks hope with her belief that “the events industry will come out the other side of [the pandemic] stronger and more capable”.
The list of National Winners for 2021 is below.
Best Live or Hybrid Public Event
Adelaide Fringe 2021, South Australia
Best Virtual Public Event
University of Tasmania Virtual Open Day 2020, Spaces Interactive
Best Live or Hybrid Congress, Conference or Exhibition
Brisbane Truck Show 2021, Heavy Vehicle Industry Australia, Queensland
Best Virtual Congress, Conference or Exhibition
Igniting our Future Conference 2021, Peanut Productions
Best Live or Hybrid Brand Event
DoorDash Delivers for the State of Origin I, II, & III 2021, MKTG Sports + Entertainment, New South Wales & Queensland
Best Virtual Brand Event
Salesforce Live Series 2020/2021, The Company We Keep
Best Live or Hybrid Corporate Event
Class of 2020: Celebrate Together, The University of Sydney, New South Wales
Best Virtual Corporate Event
Johnson and Johnson Medical Devices Annual Sales and Training Meeting 2021, Eventful Meetings and Events
Best Live or Hybrid Small Event
Airwaves – The Drive-In Music Festival 2020, Buskers by the Creek Inc, Queensland
Best Virtual Small Event
EY Secrets of the Archibald 2020, Jack Morton Australia
Best Charity or Cause-Related Event
Gibb Challenge 2021, Karunjie Event Management Pty Ltd, Western Australia
Coates Best Community Event
Coogee Live 2021, City of Cockburn, Western Australia
Best Cultural, Arts or Music Event
Parramatta Lanes 2020, City of Parramatta, New South Wales
Best Regional Event
Parrtjima – A Festival in Light 2021, Northern Territory Major Events Company
Best Technical Achievement in a Live or Hybrid Event
ORACLE – LIQUID PTY LTD for their work on Sea World Carnivale 2021
Best Technical Achievement in a Virtual Event
Big Picture for their work on Dally M Awards 2020
Best Online Event Delivery Platform
EventsAIR for OnAIR
Best Innovation, New Product or New Service
Evise and Pyrus for their work on Know My Name Conference 2020
Best Achievement in Design
Electric Canvas (The) for their work on Brisbane City Hall Christmas Projections 2020 (Gold Lotto City Hall Lights Spectacular)
Best Achievement in Marketing or Communication
Northern Territory Major Events Company for their work on Parrtjima – a Festival in Light 2021
Best Achievement in Studio Management
Big Picture for their work at the Big Picture Live Event Studio
Small Event Management Organisation of the Year
Nectar Creative Communications
Event Management Organisation of the Year
Rizer
Australian Event of the Year
EY Secrets of the Archibald 2020, Jack Morton Australia
