Announced at a special award ceremony last night, Erin Beers and Eduarda Cuadros Marquez, representing team Thinkerbell, took out joint first place in this year’s IMAA Pitch-Chella Competition.
The competition involved developing strong strategic pitches for the 2026 program’s chosen charity, national anti-bullying organisation, You Can Sit With Me.
Erin and Eduarda’s pitch focused on building You Can Sit With Me’s authority at scale, taking its message out of the classroom and into the real world to demonstrate that overarching inclusion is the way forward. The team focused on reaching school leaders and parents, meeting them when they’re already thinking about belonging – at stadiums, during the school commute, and while listening to parenting podcasts. The team suggested innovative ideas such as hijacking Ticketek’s existing “can’t leave a single seat empty” check-out to include a You Can Sit With Me pledge at the point of purchase, using yellow seating across schools as a way for educators to signal their commitment to preventing bullying.
Speaking on behalf of the judging panel, Adam Hickey and Stephen Wright said: “Strategically, the winning pitches were stellar. They were on point, an exercise in clarity. Every finalist made the decision incredibly difficult. The standard this year was exceptional, harder than any other year.”
Sam Buchanan, CEO, IMAA, says: “The standard of this year’s winning pitches was exceptional. Each team brought a unique perspective and a truly outstanding level of preparation and professionalism to their pitches. It’s encouraging to see our emerging industry talent committed to making a meaningful impact. The continued success of the IMAA’s Pitch-Chella initiative is a sign of the strength of our indie sector and the calibre of the next generation of media professionals.”
They are both amazing, and we are all very, very proud of them.