adobo magazine

23/05/2026

PEOPLE: Think HQ has appointed Victoria Gehrig as Chief Operating Officer to support the agency’s continued national growth and operational expansion.

Think HQ has appointed former dentsu and Isobar executive Victoria Gehrig as Chief Operating Officer to support the agency’s continued national growth and operational expansion.

23/05/2026

BRAND & BUSINESS: We Are Social’s Amsterdam office has partnered with KLABU to help grow its global refugee sports community through a social-first campaign and long-term strategic support.

We Are Social’s Amsterdam office has partnered with KLABU to help grow its global refugee sports community through a social-first campaign and long-term strategic support.

23/05/2026

AWARDS: New York Festivals announces the winners of the 2026 TV & Film Awards, with Mediacorp named Broadcaster of the Year and Zinc Media Group earning Production Company of the Year honors.

READ THE FULL STORY HERE: https://ebx.sh/i4u3CI

23/05/2026

DESIGN: Creative direction is no longer just about how things look, it’s about how everything connects.

In an interview with adobo Magazine, Ayala Land, Inc. Creative Director Paloma Zobel de Ayala reflects on Milan Design Week 2026 and how cities today operate as living systems where architecture, culture, commerce, and movement continuously overlap to shape more immersive ways of experiencing the place.

From “productive friction” to permeable cities, she unpacks why the future of placemaking lies in openness, interaction, and environments designed to evolve with the people who move through them.

“I think cities function successfully as creative systems when there’s permeability between disciplines, institutions, and communities. When movement, curiosity, and encounter are designed into the urban experience rather than controlled out of it,” she said.

Paloma Zobel de Ayala argues that the future of placemaking lies in building interconnected environments that allow coherence across touchpoints.

22/05/2026

DESIGN: New Balance celebrates the return of Grey Days in the Philippines with a month-long campaign spotlighting the brand’s iconic grey colorway through storytelling, cultural collaborations, and new product releases.

New Balance celebrates the return of Grey Days in the Philippines with a month-long campaign spotlighting the brand’s iconic grey colorway through storytelling, cultural collaborations, and new product releases.

22/05/2026

BRAND & BUSINESS: Carmelo Anthony’s Creative 7 Productions has partnered with Utopai Studios to develop athlete-driven sports and entertainment intellectual property powered by the company’s proprietary cinematic AI platform, PAI.

Carmelo Anthony’s Creative 7 Productions has partnered with Utopai Studios to develop athlete-driven sports and entertainment intellectual property powered by the company’s proprietary cinematic AI platform, PAI.

22/05/2026

ZEITGEIST: Having a world-famous, accomplished kabayan is always reason to celebrate. That pride was especially strong on Sunday, May 10, when, for the first time, PIXIES, the seminal alternative-rock band co-founded by Filipino-American guitarist Joey Santiago, performed in the Philippines as part of its 40th anniversary world tour.

More than a show, the concert was a reunion of sorts — a gathering of local musicians, creatives, and music fans you might have crossed paths with at gigs a decade ago — some with their kids in tow on this particular evening. On a Sunday night, they emerged from their respective corners of adulthood to witness the long-awaited performance of a band nearly as old as — if not older than — many of them. They came not out of mere fandom or nostalgia, but out of a deep appreciation for the music and respect for a group that helped define the contours of modern rock.

READ THE FULL STORY HERE: https://ebx.sh/qBxHBK

22/05/2026

: Serving on the 2026 D&AD Awards Film jury, Badong Abesamis (GIGIL ) exclusively spoke to adobo Magazine to share his observation that the entire room prioritized absolute freshness over anything that felt familiar or repetitive. Judges were completely cold toward ideas seen before, choosing instead to reward bold pieces that pushed creative boundaries.

The standout of the deliberation was “The Final Copy of Ilon Specht” by McCann Worldgroup Paris for L’Oréal Paris that won unanimous praise from everyone in the room. Badong highlighted how the campaign masterfully combined a brilliant script and exceptional acting to deliver a powerful message to both the industry and society at large.

adobo Magazine is an official partner of the 2026 D&AD Festival.

22/05/2026

ZEITGEIST: As a subculture reference, “emo” conjures images of youth in skinny jeans with studded belts, sporting raccoon-striped hair and thick black eyeliner. But to anyone who was in it for the music, it was never just a way of dressing up. It meant obsessively following your favorite bands, ripping CDs to have your own copy of their songs, and hanging on to every melody, crescendo, and divulgent verse.

As much as emo is about the specificity of musical arrangements and the technical nuances of producing it, it is also about remembering how it is to feel everything — all at once. In bringing together Faber Drive, The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, and Dashboard Confessional to perform, the Playback Music Festival reopened floodgates of nostalgia and emotions for fans, reminding them of why they fell in love with emo — and perhaps fell out of love with someone — in the first place.

READ THE FULL STORY HERE: https://ebx.sh/6nQOEE

22/05/2026

BRAND & BUSINESS: GAC Philippines officially unveils the all-new GAC AION UT — a compact EV hatchback designed for modern city driving without compromising comfort, space, and style.

Already making waves across Thailand, Australia, Europe, and Latin America, the AION UT arrives in the Philippines with a surprising lounge-like cabin, advanced safety technology, and smart urban functionality packed into a sleek compact footprint.

From its class-leading rear legroom and intelligent driver assistance systems to its flexible cargo space and Vehicle-to-Load capability, the AION UT redefines what an everyday city EV can be.

22/05/2026

: True art direction is not decoration — it is the design of a point of view. D&AD 2026 Art Direction Jury President Yoshihiro Yagi (dentsu Tokyo) shared that Pencil-worthy work must look beyond high-level ex*****on and offer an entirely new standard to culture.

The jury awarded Yellow Pencils to two standout campaigns that embodied this philosophy. The first was "The Periodic Fable" by Uncommon Creative Studio for The Ordinary, which uses the structured form of a scientific periodic table to challenge traditional beauty claims, leaning into a minimal aesthetic and raw transparency to expose industry realities. The second was "Your Way Out" by Isle of Any for Coinbase, a highly intentional creative choice documenting a real person's transformation to remind audiences that they have a distinct choice beyond the existing system in today's AI-driven world.

adobo Magazine is an official partner of the 2026 D&AD Awards.