Head Judge, Astrid Ascar has over 30 years of experience in marketing, communications, and media. She describes herself as a storyteller who has little time for jargon and complicated concepts when she’s helping clients sell their brands, products, and services.

She started her career as a journalist-presenter and radio & TV executive producer, and over the early years of her broadcast days worked for media brands including Carte Blanche, Summit TV (now Business Day TV), The Home Channel, CNBC Africa, SABC TV, SAfm, Highveld and Hot919 fm.

In 2004 she made the transition from TV and radio to what at the time was called “new media” – it was the early days of what would grow into the digital landscape. She worked as part of the team that ran South Africa’s first-ever mobile broadcast TV trials, working alongside MTN, Vodacom, and Cell C, handset manufacturers, and DStv and local content providers to eventually launch South Africa’s first-ever mobile TV offering, DStv Mobile.

By 2009 Astrid was working as an independent consultant helping clients and agencies across a range of disciplines – traditional and digital marketing and communications strategies, content creation and production, site audits and optimisation including UI and UX, and helping brands craft and implement integrated marketing strategies across owned, earned and paid channels, with a particular focus on understanding how to translate data analytics into audience and content insights.

She also continued to MC, give talks, facilitate workshops and conferences, and offer training in media interview skills, presentation skills, crisis comms, and a host of digital marketing-related topics.

She fulfilled the role of shaping and driving the IAB’s first-ever education and transformation council while she ran her consultancy and production business, discovering a passion point for mentoring and training younger talent that has become a trademark characteristic of her daily interactions.

In 2018, she joined Wunderman, which later merged with JWT to become Wunderman Thompson, as Chief Strategy Officer. As the agency group in South Africa expanded, she advanced to the position of Chief Growth and Marketing Officer.

Astrid remains with the group, now VML South Africa, as Chief Growth Officer, and is equally at ease driving a pitch and presenting to clients as she is in writing copy and shaping strategies. Her roots as a business journalist mean she can adapt to B2C and B2B challenges with ease, and she has a specific interest in helping clients, and agencies, navigate the converged worlds of creative, content, data, and commerce.

Mondré Bremner is an award-winning digital marketing strategist with over a decade of experience leading social, content, and digital transformation across Africa. At Nedbank, he spearheads the group’s digital channel strategy, overseeing the group’s social media presence across eight brands and markets. His work has earned industry recognition, including a 2024 Nedbank Group Team Achiever Award and a ranking on the 2022 Loeries MEA Brand Marketing Manager list. Mondré brings deep expertise in brand building, digital innovation, and integrated content strategy to the 2025 New Generation Social Media Awards judging panel.

Dashni Vilakazi is a dynamic leader in the media and marketing industry, bringing over two decades of expertise to the field. As the Managing Director of The MediaShop, South Africa’s largest media agency, she has led the agency to numerous accolades, including being recognized as a Top Agency for 12 consecutive years and winning Media Agency of the Year at the 2023 and 2024 AdFocus, Most Awards, and MarkLives under her leadership.

Prior to her role at The MediaShop, Dashni spent 12 years as Head of Marketing and General Manager of Marketing at Absa and Old Mutual, shaping strategic marketing initiatives for two of South Africa’s leading financial institutions. Her extensive experience spans financial services, FMCG, telecoms, QSR, retail, and beverages, with successful projects executed across global markets, including Lagos, Hong Kong, London, New York, and India.

Academically, Dashni holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA), graduating Cum Laude, and is also a certified board director, having completed her qualification at the Institute of Directors South Africa (IoDSA). Her governance expertise further strengthens her ability to drive strategic decision-making at the highest levels.

Passionate about knowledge-sharing, she has lectured at AAA and Red & Yellow Advertising Schools, presented at industry conferences, and co-hosted a radio talk show with Michael Avery on branding and marketing trends. Her commitment to the industry extends to her role as a jury member for prestigious advertising and creative awards, having served on the Effie Awards South Africa jury multiple times and, most recently, on the Cannes Lions 2024 jury. In 2025 Dashni is a Jury Member for the Global White Square International Marketing & Advertising Festival.

With a wealth of experience, strong leadership credentials, and a deep understanding of media and marketing, Dashni continues to shape the future of the industry through leadership, mentorship, and strategic innovation.

Barry Louzada is the Founder and Managing Director of Mettlestate, one of Africa's largest gaming and esports platforms, connecting brands with more than 7 million gamers through tournaments, creators, grassroots communities, universities and live events. 

Over the past decade, Barry has helped some of South Africa's leading brands navigate the rapidly evolving gaming landscape, developing award-winning campaigns that drive meaningful engagement with highly connected digital audiences. His expertise spans strategy, community building, experiential marketing, content and sponsorship, making him a recognised authority on the role gaming plays in shaping modern consumer culture. 

As a pioneer of South African esports and gaming marketing, Barry continues to work at the forefront of how brands build relevance, loyalty and impact within one of the world's fastest-growing entertainment sectors.

Xolisa Koyana is a South African creative thinker with a passion for helping brands connect with people in ways that feel meaningful, culturally relevant, and human.

As part of Penquin Airtime (Pty) Ltd, Xolisa works across strategy, marketing, activations, content, and brand development, contributing to campaigns that turn business objectives into memorable consumer experiences. With experience on brands such as Suzuki South Africa, Xolisa brings a balance of strategic clarity, creative energy, and a strong understanding of the South African market.

Driven by the belief that brands should not simply add to the noise, Xolisa’s work is centred on creating trusted voices, memorable stories, and experiences that people can genuinely connect with. Their approach blends insight, culture, creativity, and purpose with a distinct Mzansi flavour that speaks to real people in real moments.

Xolisa’s mission is to redefine how brands show up in people’s lives: not just as products or campaigns, but as meaningful companions that understand, support, and inspire their audiences.

With over 20 years of experience in digital innovation and agency start-up environments, Dani joined Standard Bank in 2022, leading the growth strategy for the award-winning global retail forex & investment app, “Shyft”.

Her role includes maintaining Shyft’s position and relevance in the market as the number one retail foreign exchange platform for forex, investments, international payments, travel & shopping, utilizing Shyft’s digital platform capabilities to deliver these services to individuals across Africa. In May of 2024, her role was expanded to include developing and managing the growth strategy for three additional investment products, namely Autoshare Invest, Webtrader, and Online Share Trading.

Bringing an honest, robust opinion and understanding of what excellence should be in the field of performance media, innovation, and fintech, she has worked with - and helped grow - some of the best local and international companies, brands, agencies, and platforms.

With over two decades of experience spanning marketing, communications, and strategic business development, Roxana is a leader deeply passionate about purpose-driven growth. At the helm of a talented team of thinkers, creators, and innovators, her focus is on building brands that matter and driving meaningful, sustainable impact. 

Roxana is fiercely committed to creating inclusive team cultures, mentoring future leaders, and championing transformation across the industry. For her, true success is rooted in collaboration, relentless creativity, and always staying ahead of what’s next.

Thato is known for delivering standout, multi-award-winning marketing campaigns that drive business results. With extensive experience at Vodacom, she’s led some of the company's most impactful work, including the 30th birthday campaign.

She specialises in digital media, integrated campaign management, and content marketing strategies. Known for optimising budgets, aligning diverse stakeholders, and driving award-winning initiatives like the Cannes Lions-winning purpose-led Anti-Hijack campaign.

She’s worked across diverse sectors, including Financial Services, Mass, Youth and High Value customer segments, Digital Lifestyle Services (Video Streaming, Gaming, and Music), Employer Brand, Sponsorships and Foundation. Notably, she was ranked 18th in Africa and Middle East’s Ranking of Marketing Managers at the Loeries 2022.

Fun fact: despite fearing animals, Thato's first job was at the Bloemfontein zoo. She took on this challenge to conquer her fears and step out of her comfort zone. This experience shaped her approach to thinking and creativity, driving her passion for purpose-led campaigns and making a real impact. It's this fearless attitude that has led to her dedication to causes that matter.

Currently, she oversees Brand, Network, Foundation and Employer Brand portfolios, ensuring brand stories connect meaningfully with audiences.

Ciarán McKivergan is a creative strategist, founder, and cultural trend analyst with over 13 years of experience leading award-winning digital campaigns across the globe. With dual degrees in Psychology and Media Studies, Ciarán blends behavioural insight with brand storytelling to build work that resonates deeply and performs powerfully.

He is the founder of 8909, a purpose-led, data-driven creative agency that has shaped campaigns for Spotify, Paramount, Comedy Central, MTV, Haleon, RCL Foods, Exclusive Books, Schick, Miss SA, Eskort, and many more. Ciarán led 8909 from inception to acquisition by MetropolitanRepublic (WPP) - and then, in a rare move, successfully acquired the company back, reasserting his vision and independence in the process.

Over the years, Ciarán has evolved from founder to CEO to his current role as Chief Creative Strategist, where he drives breakthrough thinking across brand, media, and digital innovation. He’s the architect behind 8909’s “Purpose-Driven Quantified Creativity” model - a strategic framework that fuses storytelling with measurable business impact.

Ciarán is also a rising voice in the future-of-creativity space: a trend analyst who tracks shifts in culture, tech, and consumer behaviour. He regularly consults for major corporates, speaks at creative and business conferences, and mentors emerging talent in the African creative economy.

He’s won multiple New Generation Awards, Effies, Loeries, Bookmarks, Pendorings, Smarties, Promax Awards, but his real pride is building brands that move people, shift culture, and grow business.

Courtney Chapple is an award-winning marketing and innovation leader with over 15 years of experience spanning creative strategy, client leadership, and AI-driven transformation. Currently serving as the Director of AI and New Business at the Brave Group, she spearheads Forge – the agency’s cutting-edge AI division – delivering marketing solutions with unprecedented speed and creativity.

Under her leadership, Forge has reduced turnaround times by 86%, redefining how briefs are executed across strategy, design, video, and production.

Yvette is an experienced digital media and performance marketing leader with over a decade of experience driving strategic growth for global brands across Sub-Saharan Africa.

She leads Lucid, a digital performance agency of 60 specialists built for what marketing needs now — clarity, action, and results. I've spent the last 10+ years working across various roles in the digital landscape, which has given me a unique set of skills, all of which have landed me in performance marketing, driving digital transformation for brands like L’Oréal and Nedbank across Africa. I am always pushing for smarter media, stronger teams, and strategies that move the needle.

Yvette has worked across leading South African brands in finance, beauty, auto, retail, QSR, and telecoms — navigating both scale and complexity. That range has shaped how I approach digital: grounded in business outcomes, not buzzwords. I care about the craft, not the noise — and I bring that mindset into every brief, boardroom, or judging panel I’m part of.

Darren Morris is the founder and CEO of Lucky Hustle, a digital-first creative agency built for brands and bold CMOs ready to push boundaries. Under his leadership, it has grown into an agency with an international footprint, spanning brand strategy, content production, brave creative and culture-led campaigns. 

A prominent voice on creativity and AI, Darren Morris pairs commercial sharpness with a purpose-driven belief that doing good and doing well can coexist. He joins the Newgen Awards jury championing brave, original, culture-first work.

Katie Alomia is a senior marketing and growth leader with over 20 years of experience across financial services and FMCG, having held leadership roles at Old Mutual, Discovery Vitality, SAB, Heineken and TNS Kantar. She has built her career where customer insight, commercial strategy and growth execution meet, working across South Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, the UK and the Netherlands.

Her work spans loyalty and customer lifecycle programmes, proposition development, digital growth and go-to-market strategy. She is known for bringing clarity to complex briefs and the kind of fresh thinking that helps teams and organisations move forward with confidence.

As a judge, Katie brings the perspective of someone who has worked at every layer of the marketing function, knows the difference between work that looks good and work that actually delivers, and genuinely cares about seeing the next generation of marketing talent recognised and celebrated.

Lee has over 15 years’ marketing experience across various FMCG businesses where she has worked in markets across the African continent. Most recently, Lee has been leading RCL’s Digital and AI growth strategy and execution agenda. She describes herself as endlessly curious, an early adopter, and a passion for brands that build deep consumer connection. 

Jamie-Leigh is a dynamic leader in digital marketing, specialising in strategic growth, business development, and brand positioning. As Director of Growth & Development at Algorithm, she drives high-impact marketing initiatives, industry thought leadership, and executive client engagement. With a passion for innovation and Extreme Partnership, Jamie-Leigh is committed to transforming digital performance through data-led strategies and meaningful collaboration.

With 22 years of award winning industry experience behind him as a suit and no-nonsense client-whisperer in some of SA’s top agencies, Jeremy knows all sides of the brand business better than most – both in terms of what works, what doesn’t work anymore, and how to change it.

Jeremy began his career at Grey G2 spearheading the innovation strategy for BAT. He then joined Jupiter Drawing Room Cape Town heading up the beverages business unit, producing some of the country’s most memorable advertising campaigns.

After a short sabbatical in Argentina working on a cattle farm, he returned to South Africa and was snapped up by Leo Burnett to run the Philip Morris account.

In 2014 he rejoined Jupiter Drawing Rooms as Client Service Director.

In 2021 Jeremy connected with award winning agency, Dialogue, as Managing Partner to restructure its service offering, and lead new business development. Jeremy is a fearless disrupter of the traditional agency model.

I’m a seasoned advertising & marketing professional with 18+ experience managing advertising departments at local, regional, and global companies. As an advertising enthusiast, I’ve worked with companies from a variety of industries such as Telecoms, FMCG, Tech, Construction, as well as Food & Bev.

I thrive in managing projects and as a teen, my family aptly called me, The Ringleader for that very reason. My career started in Event management and as an organization, we created experientials throughout East, West, and Southern Africa, where I learned tools to create consumer experiences as well as make brands relevant in key markets.

While managing experiential activities in East & West Africa, I received an opportunity to branch into the advertising division. There I combined my passion for planning and love for creative ideas to develop through-the-line campaigns resulting in achieving operational and business growth.

With a knack for transforming business, leveraging customer data, consumer insights as well as customer trends, we achieved organization goals, and targets, changing the category as well as making our clients famous.

I’m passionate about mentoring and enriching people's lives through, emotional intelligence so that they can be their best selves in a high-performance team. Outside of the office, I’m committed to education and tutoring through the Association for Communication and Adverting, i.e. ACA, of which I’m also a board member.

And last but not least…I’m a dog mom to Young Master Bentley who is my pandemic baby and keeps me on my toes every day!

Merissa Himraj, previous Client President South Africa - WPP Media, is focused on driving the agency's strategic vision and growth objectives to ensure business longevity and success. She is also actively involved in growing the next generation of media talent across the SSA region.

Merissa is an experienced Communications Expert, passionate about helping deliver growth for clients. A Henley Business School alumni, she has over 19 years of media & advertising Industry experience with extensive media, commercial, and creative experience. She is passionate about all things creativity, strategic thinking, data, and technology.

Kyle Oosthuizen is CEO of Blue Robot, a MarTech company delivering digital advertising solutions across EMEA, with recent expansion into APAC and LATAM. With 12 years in digital and advertising, he has led and contributed to thousands of campaigns across more than 27 countries, partnering with global brands and agencies to drive measurable effectiveness at scale. 

Kyle has served as a judge for the SMARTIES South Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa, Effie Awards South Africa 2025, Effies Europe 2026, and Bookmarks 2025, bringing a practitioner’s lens to creative and commercial performance. He is MP(SA) accredited through the Marketing Association of South Africa (MASA). Beyond commercial leadership, Kyle contributes to industry governance and standards. 

He has been involved in drafting the ARB gambling advertising code, serves as an independent external adjudicator, leads the IAB SA Media Council, and sits on the IAB SA Education Council and MMA South Africa Youth Council.

Kathryn has been a strategic ECD, specialising in CRM/DM and Loyalty for more than 25 years, and has won more than 40 awards across a variety of blue-chip brands.

An ex-Ogilvy Creative Director, Kathryn was responsible for heading up Ogilvy Interactive (and steering it through the dot.com crash!) and Ogilvy One before moving to Arc, part of the Publicis Groupe. This year, she launched specialist agency, Black&White (part of the M&C Saatchi Group SA) as Executive Creative Partner.

Kathryn has been immersed in digital for many years, and is particularly passionate about its role in integrated campaigns to leverage personalisation, create connections with consumers and drive ROI. Kathryn has too many pets, two amazing boys, is an obsessive reader and a firm believer in Radical Candour.

Tara Turkington founded Flow Communications in 2005. Flow specialises in social media, web and app development, content writing and editing, graphic design, digital marketing, public relations and media training. Today, Flow has more than 150 clients, including some well-known South African and international brands and organisations, and has completed work in more than 30 countries.

In the early part of her career, Tara was a journalist and university lecturer. Tara’s dream is to continue creating meaningful jobs, and to further develop Flow’s brand globally.

Darren Leishman is the Managing Director and Co-founder of Spitfire Inbound, a leading inbound marketing, sales, and service consultancy based in South Africa. With over 26 years of experience in the advertising, digital, and design industries, Darren has cultivated a deep passion for innovation and continuous learning. He has been instrumental in driving Spitfire Inbound's success, helping it become a HubSpot Diamond Partner and a multiple award-winning agency, including being recognized as the Best Marketing & Sales Automation Company in the 2023 African Excellence Awards.

Darren has served as Judge for the New Generation Social & Digital Media Awards for several years and was selected based on the agency's success. His ability to bridge the gap between brands, clients, and customers, combined with his innovative approach to marketing and sales, makes him a valuable asset in evaluating and recognizing outstanding achievements in the industry.

As a leader, Darren emphasizes the importance of skills development and economic empowerment, focusing on creating employment opportunities for South African youth and fostering a culture of lifelong learning. His dedication to excellence and innovation continues to inspire both his team and the broader marketing community

With 30 years of international experience, Stephen Paxton is the architect behind South Africa’s largest independent awards program. From London’s elite publishing and media sector to the forefront of the African digital landscape, Stephen has navigated the media's evolution for three decades. He founded the New Generation Awards in 2012, creating a premier benchmark for digital excellence and a lasting legacy for the marketing and creative industry.