HispanicBusiness

La Agencia de Orcí & Asociados, one of the largest independently owned Hispanic ad agencies in the country, was honored at the Imagen Foundation's 17th Annual Imagen Awards Gala. The Imagen (Spanish for "image") Awards honor positive portrayals of Latinos and Latino cultures in the entertainment industries.

La Agencia de Orcí won this same award last year for another TV spot also created for Verizon. Juan José Quintana, Vice President Executive Creative Director of La Agencia de Orcí & Asociados accepted this year's award on behalf of the agency.

La Agencia de Orcí won the "Best On-Air Advertising" category for the Spanish-language television commercial titled "Taxi," which the agency created in 2001 for Verizon's long distance services. La Agencia's commercial was selected for the award because it realistically captures the essence of why Latinos come to the U.S. (better education, better jobs, and a better life) and how they are working hard to achieve their goals. The ad also depicts the tremendous diversity of U.S. Latinos by featuring people from Mexico , the Caribbean , Central America and South America . "Taxi" was based on insights La Agencia de Orcí gathered by conducting in-depth group research sessions.

The Imagen Awards were hosted by Hector Elizondo. Special guests included this year's special honoree Dennis Leoni (Norman Lear Writers Award), Mia St. John (Female Feather Weight - presenter) and Shiela E., who headlined the gala dinner. Special honorees this year also included Esai Morales and Penelope Cruz - Entertainers of The Year Award; Andy Garcia- Creative Achievement Award; and a Life Time Achievement Award presented to Cristina Saralegui.