[Student PR Staff] Interview with the student who won the Grand Prize in the Video Category at the OAC Student Advertising Creative Awards

We, the student PR staff, disseminate information about JIU from a student perspective both inside and outside the university. We mainly interview students and cover events and disseminate information about them.

Student PR Staff: Otoharu Kawashima (4th year, Department of International Exchange Studies)
Masaaki Takekawa (2nd year, Department of International Exchange Studies)

At the 14th OAC Student Advertising Creative Awards ceremony held on January 16, 2026, Li Zekai, a third-year student Film and Performing Arts Course the Department Department of Media And Communications Faculty of Media Studies our university, won the Grand Prix in the Video category.
This contest attracts a lot of attention every year as a place to test the free-thinking and high level of expression that only students can have. Li's work, which was selected as the Grand Prix winner this year, was highly praised for its original concept and highly polished visual expression. Following his award, the student public relations staff conducted an online interview with Li.

Grand prize winner, Ms. Lee Faculty of Media Studies

About the concept

In this work, "changing one's mindset" is expressed as "liberation." I wanted to express, through the airline ANA, the image of taking a step forward from the anxiety felt during the COVID-19 pandemic. The background to the work is the anxiety about the future that I felt when I was unable to enter Japan during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, and the worldview of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The title "Beyond the Wind" was inspired by riding the wind when boarding an airplane. Rather than viewing the airplane as simply a means of transportation, going beyond the wind symbolizes stepping into a new world.

Editing Attention

In editing, I focused on capturing small emotions from everyday life, rather than flashy productions. I devised tempo and sound changes to allow viewers to feel the changes in their feelings in a natural flow. The most difficult aspect was figuring out how to convey my feelings to the viewer within the limited time of 30 seconds. I refined the composition based on "what not to say (what to discard)" within this short video. I believe the emotional message that captured the spirit of the times was well received. I believe that the fact that the work represents the "appeal of young people during the COVID-19 pandemic" and generates strong empathy, as well as the fact that it depicts travel as "liberation," motivated people to travel on a deep level.

My background as an international student and its influence on my work

At first, I was often confused by the differences in culture and values. However, I think that experience gave me the ability to see things from a different perspective. The reason I applied to Film and Performing Arts Course is because I wanted to convey emotions and atmospheres that cannot be conveyed through language alone through the medium of video. I feel that I was able to convey this as an international student through this work.

Student PR staff and Ms. Li conducting an online interview

Looking ahead

As for the next contest, I plan to start working once I've finished job hunting, which is coming up soon. This award has inspired me to pursue a career in communication that connects companies and society after graduation.
Finally, I would like to say something important to everyone who will be applying to the contest. When working on a project, communication within a team is important. If you are going to apply to a contest like this, I would like you to go into it with the strong determination to aim only for the Grand Prize.