Judge Steve Bell
Steve Bell is the owner and Creative Director of Smart Creative Media, a full service advertising agency, for the last 18 years. He has over 20 years experience in print design and broadcast media for a variety of businesses and organizations. He graduated from the University of Georgia with a BFA degree in graphic design.
Steve is a past-president of the Central Georgia Advertising Federation and a two time Addy Chair. His work has been honored numerous times in local, regional and international competitions.
Steve lives in 139 year old Victorian house in downtown Macon with his wife and two kids and enjoys his time working with non-profits.
Judge Brant Kelsey
As the founder, CEO and Chief Brand Strategist of Kelsey Advertising & Design, Brant Kelsey leads all brand development and branding initiatives, guides interactive strategies, and oversees creative services and agency management.
Brant’s expertise stems from more than 15 years of experience in brand development with strong emphasis in interactive. A variety of high-profile projects including developing a custom CMS for McDonald’s to support all 14,000+ domestic restaurants, developing and maintaining the first mobile mcdonalds.com, and developing the first online job applications for a quick service restaurant in the world.
Since its opening in 2003, Brant has evolved Kelsey from a one-man interactive firm into a full-service brand development agency. He has expanded the client base to a national level and guided the agency to countless prestigious awards.
Judge Michael O’Connel
Michael O’Connell is the graphic design and website manager at the Museum of Contemporary Art Jacksonville where he is responsible for all print and electronic media for the Museum. Before joining MOCA in 2006, Michael was the creative director and co-founder of HardBall Sports Marketing. He has been the driving force behind award-winning campaigns for a broad array of clients such as PGA TOUR, The First Tee, World Golf Foundation, Mandalay Sports Entertainment, Clear Channel Communications, the City of Jacksonville, San Antonio Spurs, Colorado Rockies and Turner Entertainment.
A graduate of Florida State University, he holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Visual Communications. Michael served on the local chapter of the American Institute of Graphic Design and was an adjunct professor at Florida Sate College at Jacksonville and remains on the college’s Digital Media Advisory Committee.
