Prestigious Crystal Pencil Takes Center Stage in Launch of The One Show 2026

Sep. 24, 2025

The pinnacle of industry creative achievement, the distinguished Crystal Pencil, is the centerpiece of this year’s branding for the launch of The One Club for Creativity’s global One Show 2026.

The Crystal Pencil was introduced in celebration of The One Show’s 50th anniversary for the 2023 competition. The dazzling award, modeled after the original Pencil designed by industry legend George Lois, is larger than the traditional one, made of crystal surrounding a black metal core for Best of Show, and around a gold metal core for Best of Discipline, and “of the Year” winners.

This year’s “Your Victory, Crystalized” branding for The One Show 2026 features animations from a comprehensive visual and motion system created by the independent creative house NotReal, based in Madrid and Buenos Aires, part of a larger campaign to be used at award shows during Creative Week.  

Adaptations for the 2026 campaign animations were art-directed and designed into final assets by Design Army, based in Washington, DC.

Copy developed by Reed Words, based in New York and London, plays off the award name to describe different aspects of this highest creative achievement.  

Headlines include “Winning speaks louder than words. Your success, Crystallized.”; “Good things come to those who don’t wait. Your determination, Crystallized.”; “At least your mom will understand this. Your pride & joy, Crystallized.”; and “Make your mark, pick up a Pencil. Your victory, Crystallized.”

Pum Lefebure, Co-founder, CCO at Design Army, and Board chairperson of the nonprofit One Club said:

“The One Show has always set the standard for creative excellence, and this year’s branding uses a modern, clear aesthetic to highlight the Crystal Pencil as the ultimate accolade that’s aspired to by creatives around the world. The elevated, refined campaign is a reflection of this highest honor in the industry’s most prestigious awards, judged with the utmost integrity by the best in the business.”

 

Valeria Moreiro, Co-founder and ECD, NotReal added:

“Leading the visual identity for The One Club was an incredible honor. As a design and creative house, we balanced individuality and unity, crafting a cohesive system that let each show shine while staying true to the club’s essence.  Built with rigor and vision, it’s a flexible legacy designed to adapt and grow year after year.”

 

New for The One Show 2026

Among the changes for The One Show 2026 are the following:

• The former, all-encompassing Design discipline is now split into two separate disciplines: Design & Branding, and Design in Advertising;
• New Creator Content discipline, in recognition of the tremendous and growing contributions of this new segment in advertising and marketing.  Entries will be judged by The One Show’s Social Media jury, which will consist of a mix of top creators and traditional ad agency creatives;

The One Show has also refined its entry policies for 2026 to make the experience as clear, fair, and accessible as possible.  To focus emphasis on the creative work itself, new submission criteria limit the use of case studies as judging material unless critical to the category; however, they may still be included as supporting media. 

Integrity remains central, with entrants having to affirm the accuracy of their statements, footage, and entry materials. 

To further level the playing field for entry, the Currency Value Adjustment program has also been expanded to more countries, opening the door for greater participation from across the globe.

Entries to The One Show 2025 can be submitted now, with fees increasing after each deadline period.  Super-early entry deadline for the greatest savings is October 30, 2025.  Early entry deadline is December 12, 2025, with the regular deadline January 23, 2025.  The extended deadline is February 6, 2026, and final deadline February 20, 2026.

The One Show 2025 Jury Presidents and full juries will be announced shortly, with early judging starting in January 2026 and finalists announced in May 2026.  Crystal, Gold, Silver and Bronze Pencil and Merit winners will be announced in May during Creative Week 2026 in New York.

All winning entries are showcased in the archive, and viewable for free for one year.  All One Show winners also receive a complimentary one-year membership to The One Club, as well as full access to the complete One Show archive, made up of more than 250,000 award-winning entries from the past 25 years.

Agencies, brands, production companies, and individuals responsible for winning work each year are highlighted in The One Show Creative Rankings, as well as The One Club’s Global Creative Rankings, which combines points won at The One Show, ADC Annual Awards, Type Directors Club TDC competition, Art Directors Club of Europe (ADCE) Awards, and ONE Asia Creative Awards.  Winners are ranked globally, regionally, and by country. 

As a nonprofit organization, The One Club puts revenue generated from The One Show entries back into the industry to fund programming under the nonprofit organization’s four pillars: Education, Inclusion & Diversity, Gender Equality, and Creative Development.