If you’re reading this, we likely don’t need to tell you how elusive that credit on an award-winning ad campaign can be. You might also harbour a fair bit of cynicism about the legions of award shows in advertising, between the ways they get more money from entrants to the techniques some agencies find to (allegedly) pander to juries. Well, a new campaign by Rethink looks to not only help confirm your beliefs, but shove them deep down inside in order to get your name on one of those trophies.

In a clever bit of circular logic, by contributing to the Indiegogo for “One Dollar One Show,” anyone can have their name added to the credits when the campaign itself is eventually entered into the One Show, using the crowdfunded cash to cover the entry fee. One dollar gets you a generic “creative team” credit, but bigger donations get you more prestigious titles, from copywriter and art director all the way to CCO. The campaign has passed its $500 goal to be entered into a single category and is currently sitting at nearly $2,600, meaning it can now enter three. Every new stretch goal it meets means it can compete in yet another category (plus entries to D&AD if it reaches $10,000 and Cannes if it reaches $15,000), so the more people that end up on the credit list, the better chance it has to win.

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As earnest as this campaign seems to be, based on the video and FAQ section on the campaign page, there are a couple things “One Dollar One Show” seems to be saying if you really read into it. A critique of the importance the advertising industry places on awards or the way they operate. A post-modern, Warhol-esque attempt to both subvert and participate in the awards show process. A meta commentary on the value of incentives in many crowdfunding campaigns that facilitate legitimate creative work. But mostly, the fun seems to be in not worrying about all of that, and waiting to see what happens in May at the One Show (which, for what it’s worth, seems eager to play along).

“This is a fantastic campaign,” said Kevin Swanepoel, CEO of The One Club, the non-profit that produces The One Show, in an e-mailed statement. “As such, we are prepared to match however much is raised for the One Dollar One Show campaign, and invest the proceeds into a program that will benefit the entire industry, one that is near and dear to us all: The One Show.”

The campaign runs until Jan. 29, the final deadline for One Show submissions.

Credits (for now):

Agency: Rethink