A South Australian film about the Barossa Valley has taken top honours as the world’s best tourism film for 2014.
The awards, presented at the ‘Festival of Festivals’ in Vienna showcased only the best tourism videos and advertisements from around the globe.
Walking away with the top spot the advertisement adds this award to a list of nominations and awards already in the bag, including seven grand prix prizes and 10 trophies in 11 countries.
Barossa Valley’s ‘Be Consumed’ ad is the brain child of local South Australian advertising agency KWP and is set to the background of famous Australian muso, Nick Cave’s Red Right Hand.
“The ad, since it went to air in June last year has seen a huge increase in the number of people coming interstate to South Australia, some specifically to the Barossa, others we know are getting out to a lot more regions as well,” said South Australia’s Tourism Minister Leon Bignell.
Mr Bignell said the advertisement had won a number of prizes already, “This is the biggest tourism film award in the world so it’s just terrific to have picked up this big gong,” Mr Bignell said.
This is not the first time South Australia has produced some of the best tourism films and ads in the world. ‘Be Consumed’ is the second in a series of tourism films produced for the territory. The first advertisement promoted Kangaroo Island, and the final advertisement, also released this year, promoted Adelaide.
“The Government was keen to come up with ads that would sort of break the mould and encourage people to think of South Australia in a different way,” Mr Bignell said.
“The people in Vienna said the ad made them feel like they could just about smell and taste the Barossa, even from the other side of the world.
“And that was some of the feedback that we got from people in Sydney and Melbourne where we played this ad and people just booked their tickets, came to South Australia and went up to the Barossa to see it for themselves.”