Chaka Sobhani and Tara Ford to co-chair Campaign Big Awards

Chaka Sobhani, president and global chief creative officer at DDB Worldwide, and Tara Ford, chief creative officer at Droga5 UK and Ireland, will be co-chairs of judges for this year’s Campaign Big Awards.

The Big Awards celebrate the best of adland’s creative output, with a panel of creative leaders choosing the best work produced over the past year.

Sobhani, who was a jury member for the Dan Wieden Titanium Lions at Cannes this year, has been at DDB Worldwide for a year now, after being appointed in 2023 from her role as CCO at Leo Burnett UK and global.

Prior to this she was at Mother, which she joined as a creative director in 2013. Her early career was in TV and film-making, and she set up ITV’s in-house agency, ITV Creative. She was named Campaign’s Creative Leader of the Year in 2023 and has consistently featured in Campaign’s Top 10 Creative Leaders.

Last year she told Campaign the most impactful creative work comes from an “emotional connection, entertainment and purpose”.

She said humour has a “really strong role” to play in creativity, but added the work has to “come from an inspiring idea, that’s well executed and fit for purpose for the brand, including in terms of where and when it is shown”.

Ford has just joined Droga5 UK and Ireland, having previously been CCO at Droga5 Australia and New Zealand and CCO across Accenture Song in Asia-Pacific.

Before this she was at DDB in Australia, latterly as CCO, and spent five years at TBWA\Australia.

Ford has overseen work including the Film Grand Prix-winning “Play it safe” for the Sydney Opera House and “The first digital nation” for the Tuvaluan Government, which received the Titanium Grand Prix at Cannes Lions 2023.

She told Campaign sister title Campaign Asia-Pacific: “Award-worthy work comprises of a fresh, original idea, beautifully crafted that is relevant to the brand and turns up in the consumers' lives at the right time in the right place. Diversified media means there are more shapes and ways to connect with people, so ideas may look different and turn up in new places now, but the heart of it should be the same.”

The awards take place at The Londoner Hotel on Thursday 13 November 2025.

The standard entry deadine is Thursday 10 July and the late entry cutoff is Thursday 24 July.

Mother London claimed the Agency of the Year gong last year, along with five other awards. Saatchi & Saatchi, Adam & Eve/DDB and Sips & Bites took home four awards apiece, while McCann landed five, two of which went to its Manchester office. McCann London’s "The everyday tactician" for Xbox won Best Campaign. The full list of 2024 winners is here.