Mental health is an issue of growing concern across society, particularly among young people. In response to this, the 15th edition of the IMMA Awards, organised by the Faculty of Communication Sciences, focused on this pressing topic. The competition was open to students from the Bachelor’s Degrees in Journalism, Audiovisual Communication, and Advertising and Public Relations, attracting a total of 96 submissions. The special category also welcomed entries from students at other universities.
The awards ceremony was hosted by Audiovisual Communication students Mireia Molina and Víktor Martínez, who guided the event in a packed Aula Magna. The audience viewed the winning projects, centred on the mental health of students. UIC Barcelona’s rector, Alfonso Méndiz, opened the event with a speech underlining the importance of creativity: “Creativity is not merely aesthetic, like composing a photograph, it’s also strategic and conceptual and has the power to improve people’s lives,” he said.
Awards were presented in five main categories: photography, sound and music, fiction production, non-fiction production, and advertising campaign. “I encourage everyone to pick up a camera and take part in competitions like this,” said Audiovisual Communication student Ricardo Ortea, whose short film El Pingüino (The Penguin) won the fiction production category, receiving warm applause from the audience.
The Aula Magna was filled with emotion during a live musical performance by students Pablo Prats (Advertising and Public Relations) and Álvaro Requena (Audiovisual Communication), who performed a version of Antonio Vega’s El sitio de mi recreo (The Place of my Refuge).
The ceremony then turned to the special category of the year, backed by the agency Malrov. Jordi Mallol, managing partner at Malrov, praised their collaboration with the IMMA Awards. “I’m impressed by the talent these students have. Sometimes we focus too much on the big international agencies yet in the faculties we find perseverance and constancy,” he explained.
The special category award went to Paula Abella Tello, an Advertising and Public Relations student from Universitat Jaume I in Castelló, for her project La fuerza del cuidado (The Power of Care), recognised for its role in helping to destigmatise mental health. “I encourage everyone to believe in themselves and to talk about mental health, which is still not normalised,” she said on stage of the Aula Magna.
The event concluded with remarks from Dr Pedro Sigaud, dean of the Faculty of Communication Sciences, who presented the final award: the UIC Barcelona Values Special Recognition. “Ethics, social awareness and impact – these are just some of the values we promote at this University,” he said, before announcing the winners: Sergi Vázquez, Carla Lis, Aina Casadesús, Elena Subirà and Carla Codina for No seas ese vecino (Don’t Be That Neighbour). “The IMMA Awards are your moment to shine, your platform to showcase your talent to leading professionals,” he concluded.
This year’s panel included Cristina Smandia (marketing and communications coordinator at CaixaFòrum and Fundación La Caixa), Micaela Ruiz (director of photography), Lucía Sanagustín (journalist on TVE News), Berta Loran (creative director at Malrov), and Andrea Lastra (psychotherapist at the Support Clinic and lecturer at UIC Barcelona).
The IMMA Awards were created in 2009 to spotlight the talent of fourth-year Bachelor’s Degree in Audiovisual Communication students through their Final Degree Projects (TFG). In the 8th edition (2017), the awards added new categories and included the participation of students from the Bachelor's Degree in Journalism and the Bachelor's Degree in Advertising and Public Relations. Now in its 15th edition, the competition has opened participation to external students in its special category, aiming to consolidate the event as the Faculty's big event, where all students can present their best projects before a professional panel of judges.
Full list of winners of the 15th edition:
- Photography: Jaume Marías Beltrán with Forma-figura
- Sound and Music: Edu Aguirán with Mayéutica: Comfort movies
- Fiction: Ricardo Ortea con El Pingüino
- Non-Fiction: Nicolau Huistra Puig with ¿Por qué no?
- Advertising campaign: Ariadna Orozco Munar with Get fully charged
Special Category:
- Ad Salutem Award - powered by MALROV for the best “HEALTH” creative campaign: Paula Abella Tello with La fuerza del cuidado
- UIC Barcelona Values Special Recognition: Sergi Vázquez, Carla Lis, Aina Casadesús, Elena Subirá, Carla Codina with No seas ese vecino
