Annual PromaxBDA Conference Heats up in Los Angeles

LOS ANGELES, June 25 /PRNewswire/ -- PromaxBDA, the leading global association for marketing, promotion and design professionals working in the entertainment industry, concluded its 55th annual conference with the highly anticipated PromaxBDA Promotion and Marketing Awards show, which celebrates the industry's best work over the past year.  

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The conference got off to a lively start with a warm welcome from Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and a hilarious monologue from Jimmy Kimmel.  Top entertainment marketing professionals from more than 40 countries gathered for three days of sessions, keynotes and awards.  This year's Los Angeles Conference saw a more than 40 percent increase in attendance from last year.  

"Marketing is increasingly being recognized as the driving force behind the entertainment industry, and the incredible energy and turnout this year really reflected that," said Jonathan Block-Verk, President and CEO, PromaxBDA.  "As entertainment marketers break down barriers and reach for new creative heights, PromaxBDA is quickly establishing itself as the predominant industry resource."

Comedian Norm MacDonald entertained audiences as host of the PromaxBDA Promotion and Marketing Awards show, a night dedicated to honoring the best in entertainment marketing around the world.  Among the night's big winners were CTV Creative Agency with 53 Awards, Showtime with 18 and FX with 15.

Earlier in the week, PromaxBDA held its annual Design Awards show to honor the best design work of the year where, FOX Broadcasting Co., bpg Advertising, CTV Creative Agency and Syfy, took home top honors.  The evening was hosted by comedian and television personality Ryan Stout. For a complete list of winners from both nights, visit PromaxBDA.org.

Yesterday, attendees gathered to witness the highly anticipated Lifetime Achievement Award presentation to founder of the iconic Playboy brand, Hugh Hefner.  In his interview with CNN's Larry King, Hefner spoke of breaking down the wall between fine art and commercial art with the contemporary design of Playboy Magazine.

This year's PromaxBDA Conference included some notable firsts.  Tuesday marked the launch of the Creative Educator's Forum, a professional development event focused on providing the latest tools, skills and innovations to help creative educators at the undergraduate and post-graduate levels meet the challenges posed by today's rapidly evolving media landscape.  PromaxBDA also held the first Promo Bootcamp, an intensive two-day workshop designed to teach the fundamentals of promo producing, writing and editing.  

The Conference represented PromaxBDA's commitment to education, community, creative inspiration and diversity.  At the start of the conference, Block-Verk acknowledged some the organization's accomplishments over the past year, including the launch of the PromaxBDA Diversity Council, a project dedicated to increasing diversity in the junior, intermediate and executive ranks of the entertainment marketing industry.  He also focused on the organization's growing slate of membership benefits, which have helped increase PromaxBDA membership numbers by more than 50 percent.  

This was the first year the conference was held in Los Angeles after eight years away.  Next year PromaxBDA will return to New York City.

About PromaxBDA

PromaxBDA (www.promaxbda.org) is a global, non-profit association dedicated to being the leading resource for education, community, creative inspiration and career development for marketing, promotion and design professionals within the entertainment/information industry. PromaxBDA's mission is to lead the conversation about the role marketing, promotion and design play in the value of media across content platforms. With a combined membership of over 3,000 companies and individuals drawn from more than 70 countries, PromaxBDA is a truly international organization uniting the individuals who will pioneer tomorrow's electronic and broadcast media. 

SOURCE PromaxBDA