Advertising agency TBWA\RAAD and creative organisation D&AD have awarded internships to two emerging creatives following the third edition of the D&AD New Blood Portfolio Review in Dubai.
Samyuktha Shankar, a graduate of VCU Brandcenter, and Sara Shakil, a graduate of FAST University, received Best Portfolio Awards at the event, which brought recent graduates and early-career creatives together with industry professionals for mentoring and portfolio assessments.
Held at TBWA\RAAD’s headquarters under the theme “Disruption Showtime”, the event featured individual portfolio reviews with the agency’s art directors, copywriters, strategists and social and digital specialists.
The programme also included a question-and-answer session with Reda Raad, group CEO of TBWA\RAAD; a presentation on award-winning creative work by Ali Rez, chief creative officer at Impact BBDO and D&AD 2026 Impact Jury President; and a talk on creative disruption by Derek Green, TBWA\RAAD’s chief creative officer.
Sabrina Porcari, a digital account executive at TBWA\RAAD, led a session on building artificial intelligence agents and developing effective prompts.
“The best ideas in this region are often sitting in a student’s laptop, waiting for someone to take them seriously,” Raad said.
“New Blood is how we do that. We open our doors, put our best people in front of young talent, and give them honest answers to hard questions. Our industry needs people brave enough to disrupt it, and today we met some of them,” he said.
Green said the programme combined expert feedback with practical case studies to help young creatives develop their skills and challenge conventions.
Paul Drake, foundation director at D&AD, said the partnership aimed to strengthen the Middle East’s creative influence by providing emerging talent with guidance, skills and industry connections.
TBWA\RAAD, established in the United Arab Emirates in 2000, is part of Omnicom Advertising. D&AD is a global non-profit organisation focused on design and commercial creativity, with awards and educational programmes supporting emerging talent.
