The Philipstown WireCar Foundation sweeps the 2026 Bookmark Awards.
Named Digital Brand of the Year as Accenture Song and Ogilvy share top agency honours
The Philipstown WireCar Foundation was named Digital Brand of the Year at the 2026 Bookmark Awards on Thursday night, the crowning result of a dominant run that saw its work claim the black pixel, South African digital marketing’s highest honour, in category after category.
Working with agency Accenture Song, the Foundation turned The Philipstown WireCar Grand Prix into the most decorated idea of the evening at The Campus in Bryanston, adding the Pixel for Purpose black pixel and a shared Best Marketer honour to a tally that ran deep into the craft and strategy categories.
The night’s most watched title, Best Digital Agency, ended in a rare draw. Accenture Song and Ogilvy each walked away with a black pixel, a result that captured an industry where the gap between its two biggest players has all but closed.
The black pixel winners
There is something powerful about watching a whole industry go quiet for the black pixels, and this year gave us plenty of those moments.
Pete Case, CEO and creative chairman at Ogilvy, was named Best Creative, recognition for a career and a body of work that has shaped how a generation of South African creatives think. Andrea Quaye, marketing director at Heineken Beverages, took Best Individual Contribution to Digital Marketing, a reminder that behind every brave campaign there is usually a brave marketer. Previdar was named Best Publisher, and Lucid Ventures took Best Direct Brand or Online Business for Jasper and Jute, proof that building something from scratch and building it well still gets noticed.
“It’s such a privilege to win this award, and it’s really humbling because this kind of work, you don’t win by yourself. It’s with my team, it’s with my amazing egancies and I want to give a big shout out to the Bookmark Awards,” Quaye said.
“I couldn’t have done this on my own over the past 10 years without my amazing team, and my incredible business partners. We started something with a dream and passion. We really are trying to change and shape the way people see art, to let it be accessible and still be something special,” said Katy Ward, owner of Jasper and Jute.
Ogilvy and Volkswagen earned the Localisation and Cultural Relevance black pixel for Forever Golf, a campaign that understood its audience so well it felt like it was made by them, for them.
The future got its moment too. Gregory Leigh Booysen of Accenture Song was named Digital Rising Star, and Vega School at Emeris produced not one but two Best Digital Student winners in Arielle Marinakis and Chad Gaddie. If you want to know where this industry is heading, those three names are a good place to start. Marinakis credited the long hours and sacrifices for the win.
“This is crazy. This is the dream as a young creative. I came into this industry super young. I didn’t know much, but I get to work every day with guys who are super talented,” Booysen said. “To those guys, I love and respect you.”
And then there was a moment that asked the room to hold its breath. Haydn Townsend was honoured with the black pixel for Outstanding Individual Impact in Digital, awarded in memoriam. It was a tribute to a life that gave so much to this industry, and a reminder of why we do any of this at all.
“Tonight we celebrated the people who refuse to settle,” said Chris Borain, executive director of IAB South Africa. “To every winner across every pixel this year, from bronze to black, you have raised the bar for all of us. And to the family, friends and colleagues of Haydn Townsend, thank you for sharing him with our industry. His impact will outlast every award ever given.
“None of this happens on its own, and it certainly does not happen without the partners who choose to stand behind it,” Borain added. “To Bmedia, our headline partner, thank you for believing in the Bookmarks and in the people who make this industry what it is. Thank you to Media24, DStv Media Sales, Unilever, MTN Ads, Futureborn, and Yarneigh Studios. Your support does not just fund an awards show. It tells every entrant, every agency and every young creative in that room that this work matters, and that someone is willing to back it.”
Gold across every theme
The black pixels are the summit, but the climb runs through eight themes, and this year the gold pixels told a story of range, craft and heart.
In Build, MakeReign took gold for Khula in Software, Services and Platforms, a product built with real people in mind. Accenture Song’s The Philipstown WireCar Grand Prix landed gold in Games, turning a serious idea into something people actually wanted to play.
In Communicate, Joe Public earned gold for Nedbank’s Hardworking Professionals in Online Video Series, a piece of work that met South Africans where they live and made them feel seen. Accenture Song added another gold here for Integrated Digital Campaign.
In Connect, Ogilvy took gold for Unilever’s #VaselineVerified, a campaign that used the internet’s own instincts against it in the best way. The Odd Number won gold for Previdar’s Show Ghana Love, and Clockwork earned gold in Influencer Marketing for The Salvation Army’s Escape It, a cause given real reach.
In Innovate, Ogilvy claimed gold for Audi’s TikTok Test Drive in Channel Innovation, taking a car showroom and rebuilding it inside a feed.
In Impact, the strategists had their say. VML SA won gold for Vaseline’s Mntana Ka Gogo in Break Through on a Budget, doing more with less and doing it beautifully. Ogilvy took gold for Google in Search Engine Optimisation with If the fits, circle it, while Accenture Song and Ogilvy both earned gold in Digital Campaign Strategy for The Philipstown WireCar Grand Prix and #VaselineVerified respectively.
In Publish, The Odd Number’s Show Ghana Love took gold in Social Media Content, a publisher story with genuine soul.
And in Craft, where the details are everything, MakeReign’s Khula was a repeat winner across Strategy, Software, Coding and Tech Innovation and Interactive Design, while Accenture Song’s The Philipstown WireCar Grand Prix collected gold in Online Video, Interactive Design and Excellence in Craft.