What’s new for adfest 2027 Lotus Awards?

This year brings new Special Awards and category updates, celebrating the region’s most innovative work and ideas that define what’s next.

SPECIAL AWARDS
Two new Special Awards join the line-up:
Campaign of the Year: Awarded to the campaign with the highest combined score from finalists and winners across all Lotus categories. Film Production Company of the Year: Recognised separately from Production Company of the Year, this award honours the film production company with the highest combined score across film-based categories.
Media Agency of the Year and PR Agency of the Year will now be scored across all Lotus categories, expanding beyond Media Lotus and PR Lotus respectively. Digital Agency of the Year is discontinued.

The definitions for Independent Network of the Year and Independent Agency of the Year have also been updated. To qualify, agencies and networks must be privately owned and managed, and not affiliated with a publicly quoted holding company or corporate conglomerate.

GAMING & SPORTS LOTUS
Gaming & Sports Lotus joins the adfest 2027 Lotus Awards line-up as a new Lotus category.

CRAFT & TECHNOLOGY
Print & Outdoor Craft Lotus is renamed Creative Craft Lotus to recognise craftsmanship across a broader range of creative disciplines. Digital Craft Lotus is also expanded to include more AI Craft categories, reflecting the growing influence of AI on creative craft and execution.

HUMOUR
Use of Humour is introduced as a sub-category across 12 Lotus categories.

What are the Lotus categories?

There are 22 Lotus Categories including:
Brand Experience Lotus Commerce Lotus Creative Craft Lotus *RENAME* Creative Strategy Lotus Design Lotus Digital & Social Lotus Digital Craft Lotus Direct Lotus Effective Lotus Entertainment Lotus Film Craft Lotus Film Lotus Gaming & Sports Lotus *NEW* Innova Lotus Lotus Roots Media Lotus New Director Lotus Outdoor Lotus PR Lotus Press Lotus Radio & Audio Lotus Sustainable Lotus

How much are entry fees?

FEES BY LOTUS	EARLY BIRD FEE Invoice by 18 Dec 2026 Payment by 8 Jan 2027	REGULAR FEE Invoice by 15 Jan 2027 Payment by 29 Jan 2027	LATE FEE Invoice by 29 Jan 2027 Payment by 29 Jan 2027
Brand Experience Lotus Commerce Lotus Creative Craft Lotus *RENAME* Creative Strategy Lotus Design Lotus Digital & Social Lotus Digital Craft Lotus Direct Lotus Effective Lotus Entertainment Lotus Film Craft Lotus Film Lotus Gaming & Sports Lotus *NEW* Media Lotus New Director Lotus Outdoor Lotus PR Lotus Press Lotus Radio & Audio Lotus Sustainable Lotus	THB 17,500	THB 19,500	THB 21,500
Innova Lotus Lotus Roots	THB 25,000	THB 27,000	THB 29,000
Film School (under New Director Lotus)	THB 8,750	THB 9,750	THB 10,750

Note: All entry fees are inclusive of VAT 7%

When are the deadlines for entry submissions?

FOR ALL LOTUS CATEGORIES

FEES & DEADLINES	ENTRY CONFIRMATION & INVOICE GENERATION DEADLINE	PAYMENT DEADLINE	MATERIALS & DOCUMENTS DEADLINE
Early Bird Fee	Friday 18 December 2026	Friday 8 January 20271	Friday 29 January 2027
Regular Fee	Friday 15 January 2027	Friday 29 January 20272	Friday 29 January 2027
Late Fee	Friday 29 January 2027	Friday 29 January 20272	Friday 29 January 2027

Early Bird Fee¹: If payment is not received by Friday 8 January 2027, 11.59 pm BKK time (UTC+7), the Early Bird Rate invoice will be voided and a new invoice with the Regular Rate will be issued.
Regular Fee²:  If payment is not received by Friday 29 January 2027, 11.59 pm BKK time (UTC+7), the Regular Rate invoice will be voided and a new invoice with late fees will be issued.

Who can submit works to adfest?

adfest is a regional festival so only works from companies within Asia, the Pacific including Australia, New Zealand, and the Middle East region are eligible.

How do I submit entries?

9 KEY STEPS TO ENTERING
You can create your entry, edit and save along the way until you’re ready to confirm. Once confirmed, entry details can no longer be edited.

If your entry details are ready but your materials are not, you can confirm the entry and upload materials until Friday 29 January 2027.

More detail on the Submission steps, please see the detail in the Entry Kit.

*Entry credits CANNOT be revised after Friday 29 January 2027. Any requests for changes are subject to the approval of the Organiser. A fee of THB 3,000 per entry will be charged for each change including revisions for credit revisions, written submission and material replacements.

What methods of payment are accepted?

adfest accepts the following payment methods:
International Bank Transfer (subject to THB 300 additional charge for overseas bank transfer) Credit Card (subject to 3.2% additional charge) Cheque/Bank Transfer for Domestic Payment (Thailand Only)

How can I go back to the system to continue my payment?

To proceed to payment for your entries:
Login to your account and select “Awards” Select “Payment Summary” Under “Action,” click “Pay” to proceed to payment.

Why is my payment status “Unpaid” even though I’ve already paid?

As adfest needs to verify the receipt of payment with our bank, your payment is likely in the process of being verified. Once payment is received and verified, our finance department will update your payment status to “Paid” and send you the Receipt for your payment.

If you encounter any issues with payment, please contact Arunya@adfest.com for assistance.

Where are the Submission Form, Entry Confirmation Form, and Summary Form?

You can find these forms in the following sections of Entry Submission:
Submission Form from the Entry List & Payment Entry Confirmation Form from the Entry List & Payment Summary Form from the Entry Summary

Our work does not have a client, can we still submit?

Yes, you can. The work can be created as a self-promotion or internal communication campaign, for which you can be considered the client. In which case, please provide a verification letter in your company letterhead to state that the entry is part of your self-promotion or internal communication campaign.

Can my clients submit? If so, do they have to provide a Client Endorsement Letter?

Yes, clients are most welcome to submit entries. They can provide a verification letter in their letterhead to state that the entry is part of their communication campaign.

Where can I find the label?

adfest does not use labels. You no longer need to submit a mounted board of your entry’s digital image. adfest will print the board for you. However, if your entry has an actual physical sample of the work, you should send the physical material as it will benefit the juries in judging your work. You must attach the Entry Confirmation Form along with your physical entry, if applicable.

I need to revise some credits for my entry, how can I do so?

You can inform Nat@adfest.com to revise an entry’s credits. However, requests for credit revisions must be done by Friday 29 January 2027, after which, credits will remain as entered by the entrant.

After 29 January 2027, any requests for changes are subject to the approval of the Organiser. A fee of THB 3,000 per entry will be charged for each change including revisions for credit revisions, written submission and material replacements.

I have changed my mind and want to withdraw my entry. Can I get a refund?

No. Once the payment has been made and the entry has been processed, while you can withdraw your entry from being judged, the payment for the entry is non-refundable.

What is the Fabulous Five?

As one of the sub-categories under the New Director Lotus, Short Films by the Fabulous Five is a platform aimed to kickstart the careers of commercial directors in the Asia Pacific and Middle East. Launched in 2008 (as the Fabulous Four), the initiative has grown to receive close to 50 scripts from a dozen cities across the region.

Aspiring directors are invited to submit scripts (free of charge) for the chance to become one of the Fabulous Five New Directors. Juries of the New Director Lotus panel will vote for their favorite scripts to determine the identities of the Fabulous Five, who will be flown, accommodated, and take the stage and premiere their short films at adfest 2027, taking place Thursday 18 – Saturday 20 March 2027 in Pattaya, Thailand.

All Fabulous Five films will also be automatically accepted to the Young Director Award (YDA) and entered for consideration at the Academy Award® and BAFTA qualifying 2027 LA Shorts International Film Festival (LA Shorts).

Who is eligible to become a Fabulous Five?

To be eligible, aspiring directors must meet the following criteria:
Entrants must be directors or assistant directors based in Asia and the Pacific, including Australia, New Zealand, and Middle East. Eligible Directors must have started their career after March 2025.
Note: No more than 2 years professional experience as a Director. Each eligible director can only submit one script. Scripts which might offend national or religious sentiments or public taste are not eligible.

How to become a Fabulous Five?

Each entrant submits (free of charge) a script for a 5-minute short film inspired by the adfest 2027 theme, “30&BEYOND” by Monday 4 January 2027. If your script is one of the top five scripts as voted by adfest’s Film Craft Lotus & New Director Lotus jury, you will be asked to direct the short film of the submitted script and debut your film at adfest 2027, held Thursday 18 – Saturday 20 March 2027 in Pattaya, Thailand. 
adfest will provide return economy airfare, ground transportation, accommodation, and full delegate registration for these 5 selected directors to attend adfest 2027 to debut and discuss their short films at the Fabulous Five session on Friday 19 March 2027.

To submit a script, click here.