The Platinum Egg 2014: Silla Levin.
Silla Levin is from the small west-Swedish city of Vänersborg. Which may explain a few things. There is often a kind of mainstream, inclusive tone in Silla’s work and general approach that is decidedly not part of the course syllabus at Beckmans College of Design. It had to come from somewhere. When she started as an AD at red-hot Paradiset in 1996, she jumped straight into a campaign for popular Norrlands Guld beer, the whole strategy of which was built around making fun of the stress and pretentiousness of big city life. She was a hand-in-glove fit for the job.... In 2001, she knocked on the door at Forsman & Bodenfors, an hour’s drive from Vänersborg in Gothenburg. She got the job and stayed with the agency for the next 20 years. Her tenure on the west coast was brief, however. Silla was one of the pioneers at F&B’s new Stockholm office, and eventually became a partner in the agency. A combination of laser-like creative focus with simple common sense is a very effective weapon, as it turns out. “Projekt Flicka” (Project Girl), a campaign for the Ministry of Health and Social Affairs featuring open letters to companies on billboards all around the country, is a brilliant example from her portfolio. It won a Golden Egg, but more importantly, it caused people to take a moment in the midst of a hectic commute and reflect on the conditions young women are living under. Another was the idea of having fashion designers work with reflective fabrics in order to rinse out some of the dorkiness associated with reflectors, with the insurance company IF as the client. Also an award-winner. Silla Levin loves winning, which was also why she joined the senior section of the IFK Lidingö Athletics team just before her fortieth birthday. This turned out to be more challenging than advertising, however, especially the pole vault. After losing to a 73 year old in the 400 metre hurdles, she thanked the club for the opportunity and turned her focus back to the job. Which turned out to be a wise decision. In 2017, she became CEO for Forsman & Bodenfors, and then four years later for the Kurppa Hosk brand agency, with offices in Stockholm and New York.