Cynopsis at Cannes Lions: Day Four
06/21/18

It’s the fourth day of Lions and the facades are starting to give way to real talk. Well, in some corners of the Palais. In others it’s still buzzword central. And the celebs are still popping up like whack-a-moles. Last night, Kylie Jenner attended the Spotify Beach Party to watch her boyfriend Travis Scott perform. Elsewhere, at a Chateau not so far away, Kylie Minogue played a set at the News UK party. In a luxe villa up in the hills, Billy Joe Armstrong played an intimate set of Green Day’s greatest hits. Game of Thrones’ Nikolaj Coster-Waldau appeared on stage this morning to introduce the Lion’s Share initiative and Ridley Scott introduced the New Directors’ Showcase. But what’s really on the participants’ minds after four days of talks? Well, why don’t we ask the people on the street (Happy Hour, that is)!

QUICK TAKES FROM CANNES

A panel called “Five Campaigns that Shook the World,” looked at TV ad campaigns that had a major impact on culture – for better or worse. Lisa Gilbert, CMO of IBM in the UK and Ireland, picked Red Bull’s “Stratos”. “It’s an amazing piece of theatre that started a broader conversation,” she said pointing out, “there is so much branded content out there, if you don’t take a risk you’ll get lost in the digital landscape.” Lisa Jedan, the Global Head of PR at Bacardi Martini, chose the BMW film series from directors like Tony Scott and Guy Ritchie featuring James Brown, Madonna etc. “Today looking at it, it seems commonplace, but in 2001 it was ballsy,” she said about the campaign that resulted in a 12% sales increase for BMW and 11 million views in an era of no streaming. The future, she thinks is all about companies taking a stand: “It’s no longer good enough for brands just to have a good product, consumers are asking them to have a role in culture.” Lars Silberbauer, Senior Global Director at Lego, chose the recent Pepsi ad where Kendall Jenner resolves racial tension with a can of soda. “This is how you f*** things up,” he said. “You can’t fake it, you have to be honest and authentic. This is an example on how not be authentic - a very expensive testament.” Andrew Canter, Global CEO of BCMA, picked the dancing silhouettes of iPod+iTunes, Apple and the iPod shuffle and “The Future is Orange,” from Ridley Scott. Said Canter: “We always want to know what the future is, but we sometimes we need to look back.”

Film director Chris Nelius announced the launch of Lion’s Share, an initiative to protect wildlife. “We use animals to help us tell stories,” said Nelius. “Animals are a tried and true way for us to sell products, but there is a big disconnect. Animals are not doing well in the wild. If we’re going to use a cheetah, why couldn’t they see something in return?” The Lion’s Share initiative suggests that companies using animals in their ads donate 0.5% of their media spend to the trust, which would mean an annual donation of 47 million dollars.

Can a partnership between Hollywood and Madison Avenue work? According to actor/producer/recording artist Common, yes. The appeal of hitching his wagon to Microsoft was all about the passion his collaborators, Andrew Panay and Brian Klugman from Blk-Ops and Kathleen Hall, CVP of Brand, Global Advertising and Research at Microsoft, had for the project. “I love the creative ideas you all had, and the heart and soul – this is what I want to be part of as an artist who’s driven by the passion for the art,” he said. For the musician it was also important that he felt a genuine connection to the brand. “As an artist you don’t want to feel like a whore, you want to connect with a brand that has some type of integrity and that’s what I found with [Microsoft],” he said. “It’s been the most authentic relationship I’ve had with any brand.”

Valerie Vargas, Senior Vice President, Advertising and Creative Services, AT&T Mobility and Entertainment Group, joined award-winning writer/actor Lena Waithe to talk about the AT&T Hello Lab Mentorship Program in a panel about “Diversity Beyond Empowerment to Execution.” Waithe joins Common, Tessa Thompson, Taika Watiti, Cary Fukunaga, Rachel Morrison and Shelby stone in mentoring filmmakers from groups that are traditionally underrepresented in the film industry, helping them produce films of their own. “For us it’s really about providing opportunity to nurture the next generation of talent that’s going to create entertainment, and bring those stories to our customers,” says Vargas. “Our customers love this. And the inspiration for this comes from the heart and soul of AT&T. We’re one of the most diverse companies. Being able to provide stories that reflect our employee base, means we will in turn reflect the community we serve.” Added Waithe, “The entertainment we watch should feel like a mirror and if a colored person only sees people that look like the status quo, they will feel like they’re invisible. So, I think we have to be able to see ourselves – but we have to go beyond ‘I want to see myself.’ I want to see my own trauma, my own brokenness and turn it into something beautiful. It’s important for us as artists to not write something self-serving, but something brutally honest.”

“A lot of people think I’ll do anything with a horse in it,” Kevin Costner joked about the roles he chooses at panel this afternoon. “The thing I’m most gratified about is that my career hasn’t drilled down to certain movie.” Costner said he’s not necessarily opposed to making sequels. “It’s not that I don’t want to do sequels, I do. I want the truck to back up with all the money. I’m not dumb,” he said as the audience laughed. “But not enough that I don’t understand the movie I just made. I don’t want to make a bad one and then make a third one to apologize for the second one.” In town to talk about his new Paramount Network series Yellowstone, Costner reflected on an illustrious career. “I got to run with a buffalo. I try to save the world in my movies, I get the girl – I got to kiss Whitney. I get to do a lot of things,” he says. “There is a chance when you make a movie or a series that you can create images and moments that you never forget.”

Heard: Tech platforms are more of a threat to the creative industry than an opportunity, was the conclusion of an audience poll at a panel session about the power of big tech platforms. The result showed a significant downward shift compared to an opening poll which revealed overwhelming support for tech platforms. The panel event was hosted by The Economist and featured Carolyn Everson, VP Marketing Solutions at Facebook, Evgeny Morozov, author and journalist, Kasha Cacy, Chief Executive Officer USA at UM, and Keith Weed, CMO at Unilever. Those attending the debate were asked “Are the big tech platforms a threat or an opportunity for the creativity industry?” Initially, 68% saw them as an opportunity, while 21% said they were a threat, but when the question was asked again at the end of the debate, the number who saw them as an opportunity dropped to 43% and those who saw them as a threat rose to 54%.

Truth from the Mouths of Lions – Happy Hour Edition

“I think the industry is in bad shape because of the rise of the big tech companies. I think there is a huge risk that the Amazons and the Apples will sweep away what is still, today, our industry.” - marketing director.

“Concerns? There’s just opportunities. The whole advertising industry realized that we’re moving straight forward into a digital world and making huge steps. A couple of years ago no one recognized that, and now it’s here and they see that.” - digital director.

“When I see the award-winning work, a lot of stuff is super bold and tells me people are following their guts more than data, but all the presentations go on about how we know all about our consumers just using algorithms, so I’m torn about what exactly I’m taking away.” - marketing director.

“This whole theme about the tension between technology and creativity, we were saying, is kind of bull****. It’s like a media story that everyone’s getting really concerned with, that’s actually a really symbiotic relationship. There’s too much focus on it, and I think it’s just getting boring. Let’s get on with it.” - brand director.

“Nothing has surprised me this week. Nothing.” - digital director.

Product Design

Grand Prix
Kingo

KINGO

OGILVY COLOMBIA, Bogotá / KINGO ENERGY, Guatemala City / OGILVY GUATEMALA, Guatemala, Central America

OGILVY COLOMBIA, Bogotá / OGILVY GUATEMALA, Guatemala, Central America

POWELL COMMUNICATIONS, New York

COLOMBIA

Gold Lion

Futurecraft 4D

ADIDAS

ADIDAS, Amsterdam

EXPOSURE NY, New York / RESN, Amsterdam / 4D MAX, Bedfordshire

THE NETHERLANDS

PR

Grand Prix
Trash Isles

PLASTIC OCEANS/LADBIBLE

AMVBBDO, London

LADBIBLE, London / LADBIBLE, London

LADBIBLE, London

LADBIBLE, London / LADBIBLE, London

UNITED KINGDOM

Gold Lions
Turning Beer Into Water

ANHEUSER-BUSCH

FLEISHMANHILLARD, New York / ANHEUSER-BUSCH, New York

USA

This Coke is a Fanta

COCA-COLA

DAVID THE AGENCY, São Paulo

MYND8, Sao Paulo / JAMUTE, São Paulo

BRAZIL

Trash Isles

PLASTIC OCEANS/LADBIBLE

AMVBBDO, London

LADBIBLE, London / LADBIBLE, London

LADBIBLE, London

LADBIBLE, London / LADBIBLE, London

UNITED KINGDOM

Nature Represented

SAMBITO

MARURI GREY, Guayaquil

ECUADOR

Pay With Views

OPEL
WALTER THOMPSON AMSTERDAM

ISOBAR , Amsterdam / SHARPEN, Amsterdam

CARAT, Amsterdam

ISOBAR , Amsterdam / SHARPEN, Amsterdam

THE NETHERLANDS

The Most German Supermarket

EDEKA ZENTRALE AG & CO. KG

JUNG VON MATT, Hamburg

GERMANY

Start Your Impossible

TOYOTA MOTOR CORPORATION

TOYOTA USA, Plano / SAATCHI & SAATCHI TOYOTA AGENCY, Torrance / DENTSU INC., Tokyo

SAATCHI & SAATCHI TOYOTA AGENCY, Torrance / DENTSU INC., Tokyo

USA

KFC 'FCK'

KFC

MOTHER, London

BLUE 449, London

FREUDS, London

UNITED KINGDOM

Price On Our Lives

MARCH FOR OUR LIVES - PARKLAND STUDENTS

McCANN NEW YORK

USA

KFC 'FCK'

KFC

MOTHER, London

BLUE 449, London

FREUDS, London

UNITED KINGDOM

#shedrives

NISSAN SAUDI ARABIA

TBWA\RAAD, Dubai

TBWA\FULLSTOP, Jeddah

OMD, Dubai

TBWA\FULLSTOP, Jeddah

UNITED ARAB EMIRATES

The Flip

MCDONALD'S

WE ARE UNLIMITED, Chicago

RESOLUTION MEDIA, Chicago

OMD USA, Chicago

RESOLUTION MEDIA, Chicago

USA

Bihor Couture

BEAU MONDE STYLE

BEAU MONDE MAGAZINE

MRM//MCCANN BUCHAREST

UM BUCHAREST

MRM//MCCANN BUCHAREST

ROMANIA

This Coke is a Fanta

COCA-COLA

DAVID THE AGENCY, São Paulo

MYND8, Sao Paulo / JAMUTE, São Paulo

BRAZIL

Creative Data

Grand Prix
JFKUnsilenced

THE TIMES/NEWS UK & IRELAND

ROTHCO | ACCENTURE INTERACTIVE , Dublin

CEREPROC, Edinburgh

THE TIMES, London

CEREPROC, Edinburgh

IRELAND

Gold Lions
Destination Pride

PFLAG CANADA

FCB/SIX, Toronto

INITIATIVE, Toronto

GLOSSY, Toronto

CANADA

Project Revoice

THE ALS ASSOCIATION

BWM DENTSU, Sydney

HAYSTAC, Sydney

AUSTRALIA

Know What Your Data Knows

GOOGLE

ELEVEN, San Francisco

OPTIMUM SPORTS, New York / PHD, New York

USA

Gene Project Case Study

UNILEVER

adam&eveDDB, London

UNITED KINGDOM

Innovation

Grand Prix
My Line

MINISTRY OF COMMUNICATIONS & TECHNOLOGY

MULLENLOWE SSP3, Bogotá

COLOMBIA

Gold Lion
Making the World Accessible, Dot by Dot

DOT

SERVICEPLAN GERMANY, Munich / SERVICEPLAN KOREA, Seoul / DOT INCORPORATION, Seoul

CLOUDANDCO, Seoul

GERMANY

Social & Influencer

Grand Prix

Nother Beats a Londoner

NIKE

WIEDEN+KENNEDY, London

MINDSHARE, London

UNITED KINGDOM

Gold Lions
Exclusive the Rainbow

MARS WRIGLEY CONFECTIONERY

DDB CHICAGO

STARCOM, Chicago / MEDIACOM, Chicago

OLSON ENGAGE, Chicago

USA

Dundee: The Son of a Legend Returns Home

TOURISM AUSTRALIA

DROGA5, New York

EXILE EDITORIAL, New York

UM, New York / UM, Sydney

DROGA5, New York / KOVERT CREATIVE, Santa Monica

EXILE EDITORIAL, New York

USA

FIFA 18 More Than a Game

EA SPORTS

adam&eveDDB, London

UNITED KINGDOM

Google Home of the Whopper

BURGER KING

DAVID, Miami

BURGER KING, Miami

USA

Dundee: The Son of a Legend Returns Home

TOURISM AUSTRALIA

DROGA5, New York

EXILE EDITORIAL, New York

UM, New York / UM, Sydney

DROGA5, New York / KOVERT CREATIVE, Santa Monica

EXILE EDITORIAL, New York

USA

Ski the World

AUDI

CANDIDE THOVEX, Hamburg / THJNK, Hamburg

GERMANY

To the Last Tree Standing

GREENPEACE POLAND

OGILVY POLAND, Warsaw / SHOOTME VISUAL ARTISTS, Warsaw / AMP POLAND, Warsaw / SOUNDS GOOD, Warsaw

OGILVY POLAND, Warsaw / GAMESET, Warszawa / LIFETUBE, Warsaw / NEW AGE MEDIA, Warsaw

OGILVY POLAND, Warsaw / GREENPEACE POLAND, Warsaw

POLAND

Ski the World

AUDI

CANDIDE THOVEX, Hamburg / THJNK, Hamburg

GERMANY

Welcome to @Apple

APPLE

TBWA\MEDIA ARTS LAB, Los Angeles

OMD USA, Los Angeles

USA

Talk Social To Me

WENDY'S

VML, Kansas City

SIX COURSE, Los Angeles

SPARK FOUNDRY, New York

KETCHUM, New York

SIX COURSE, Los Angeles

USA

NIKE – Nothing Beats a Londoner

NIKE

MINDSHARE, London / WIEDEN+KENNEDY, London

MINDSHARE, London

UNITED KINGDOM

NIKE – Nothing Beats a Londoner

NIKE

MINDSHARE, London / WIEDEN+KENNEDY, London

MINDSHARE, London

UNITED KINGDOM

Dundee: The Son of a Legend Returns Home

TOURISM AUSTRALIA

DROGA5, New York

EXILE EDITORIAL, New York

UM, New York / UM, Sydney

DROGA5, New York / KOVERT CREATIVE, Santa Monica

EXILE EDITORIAL, New York

USA

Direct

Grand Prix
Palau Pledge

PALAU LEGACY PROJECT

HOST/HAVAS, Sydney

RED AGENCY, Sydney

AUSTRALIA

Gold Lions
Tagwords

AB INBEV

AFRICA, São Paulo

BRAZIL

Deisel - Go With the Fake

DIESEL

DIESEL, Breganze / PUBLICIS ITALY, Milan / PUBLICIS, New York

PARK PICTURES, New York

ITALY

Black Supermarket

CARREFOUR

CARREFOUR, Massy / MARCEL, Paris

FRANCE

BVG X Adidas – The Ticket-Shoe

BERLINER VERKEHRSBETRIEBE (BVG)

JUNG VON MATT, Hamburg

GUD.BERLIN / VIRUS, Hamburg / MARKENFILM CROSSING, Hamburg

ACHTUNG!, Hamburg

GUD.BERLIN / VIRUS, Hamburg / MARKENFILM CROSSING, Hamburg

GERMANY

It’s a Tide Ad Campaign

PROCTER & GAMBLE

PROCTER & GAMBLE, Cincinnati / SAATCHI & SAATCHI, New York

PLATINUM RYE ENTERTAINMENT, Chicago / MKTG, Cincinnati / PROCTER & GAMBLE, Cincinnati

HEARTS & SCIENCE, New York

TAYLOR, New York / MARINA MAHER COMMUNICATIONS, New York

PLATINUM RYE ENTERTAINMENT, Chicago / MKTG, Cincinnati / PROCTER & GAMBLE, Cincinnati

USA

My Line Powered by Google

MINISTRY OF COMMUNICATIONS & TECHNOLOGY

MULLENLOWE SSP3, Bogotá

COLOMBIA

XBox Design Lab Originals: The Fanchise Model

MICROSOFT

McCANN LONDON

HELLOWORLD, New York / AYZENBERG, Seattle / MICROSOFT XBOX, Redmond

McCANN LONDON

HELLOWORLD, New York / AYZENBERG, Seattle / MICROSOFT XBOX, Redmond

UNITED KINGDOM

Scary Clown Night

BURGER KING

LOLA MULLENLOWE, Madrid

WEBER SHANDWICK, London / ALISON BROD MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS, New York

SPAIN

Sindoor Khela - No Conditions Apply

TIMES OF INDIA

FCB INDIA , Mumbai

INDIA

Price on Our Lives

MARCH FOR OUR LIVES - PARKLAND STUDENTS

McCANN NEW YORK

USA

Media

Grand Prix
Tesco’s Food Love Stories

TESCO

MEDIACOM, London / BBH LONDON

MEDIACOM, London

UNITED KINGDOM

Gold Lions

This Coke is a Fanta

COCA-COLA

DAVID THE AGENCY, São Paulo

MYND8, Sao Paulo / JAMUTE, São Paulo

BRAZIL

To the Last Three Standing

GREENPEACE POLAND

OGILVY POLAND, Warsaw / SHOOTME VISUAL ARTISTS, Warsaw / AMP POLAND, Warsaw / SOUNDS GOOD, Warsaw

OGILVY POLAND, Warsaw / GAMESET, Warszawa / LIFETUBE, Warsaw / NEW AGE MEDIA, Warsaw

OGILVY POLAND, Warsaw / GREENPEACE POLAND, Warsaw

POLAND

Fresh Prints

ALDI

McCANN BARCELONA / McCANN SPAIN , MADRID

McCANN BARCELONA

HAVAS MEDIA , Barcelona

McCANN BARCELONA

SPAIN

Project 84

CALM

adam&eveDDB, London

W COMMUNICATIONS, London

UNITED KINGDOM

David Bowie is Here

SPOTIFY

SPOTIFY, New York

LEISURE INC, Brooklyn

USA

XBox Design Lab Originals: The Fanchise Model

MICROSOFT

McCANN LONDON

HELLOWORLD, New York / AYZENBERG, Seattle / MICROSOFT XBOX, Redmond

McCANN LONDON

HELLOWORLD, New York / AYZENBERG, Seattle / MICROSOFT XBOX, Redmond

UNITED KINGDOM

Aussie News Today

TOURISM AUSTRALIA

CLEMENGER BBDO SYDNEY

UM, Sydney

ONE GREEN BEAN SYDNEY

AUSTRALIA

INTEL Re-Imagines the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics

INTEL

OMD USA, New York / INTEL CORPORATION, Santa Clara

OMD USA, New York

USA

80 Days of Argos

ARGOS

THE&PARTNERSHIP, London

MINDSHARE, London

UNITED KINGDOM

Media Network of the Year

WPP’s Mediacom

Tomorrow at Cannes Lions

Tomorrow is the last day and we’re discussing Miss America in the #metoo era, the power of confidence with David Oyelowo and redefining femininity with creativity. And probably more quotes from conference participants, because we like those. Tune in!