JUNE 22, 2018
PRESENTED BY
| |
Well, friend, Cannes Lions 2018 is officially over, leaving us in the figurative (and in some cases literal) hangover period where the industry goes eerily quiet between the festival and Fourth of July.
This year’s festival will likely be remembered as a relatively sleepy and smaller one, with turnout and entries down by a reported 20 percent or so. One of the most shocking sites was the Gutter Bar at the end of the final night—people were sitting at tables, with plenty of standing room around them! What madness is this?
There are a wide variety of factors at play here, though most of it can likely be chalked up to general frugality as the agency holding companies try to send a message of cost-cutting and sensible behavior. But the joke may be on them. Brands certainly seemed to be heavily represented at networking events, so long-term victory may go to those agencies who bought in on Cannes while others cashed out.
Before we all move on with our yacht-less lives, let’s take a look below at some of the trends and big winners that defined this year’s Cannes.
David Griner
Creative and Innovation Editor, Adweek
| |
| |
In Film, it was P&G’s year
The Film Lions have always been the big finale of the festival, where the last award show leads up to a presentation of all the golds and Grand Prix winners. And those coveted top spots this year went to P&G, winner of both Grand Prix in film. The artful and emotional short film The Talk, created by BBDO New York for P&G’s My Black Is Beautiful program, took home one top prize, while Saatchi & Saatchi New York’s “It’s a Tide Ad” cleaned up with the other Grand Prix. Chief Brand Officer Marc Pritchard tells us he was “humbled” by the wins, especially for “The Talk,” which he says “reinforces the power and the responsibility of brands to be the courageous change we want and need in the world.”
It’s like Publicis never left
Speaking of “It’s a Tide Ad,” Saatchi NY was only one of several Publicis-owned agencies who did well at Cannes despite the holding company’s year-long ban on entering award shows. Thanks to clients footing the bill for entries and a few other creative workarounds, several Publicis projects brought home hardware: BBH London’s “Food Love Stories” for Tesco won Grand Prix in Media, and Publicis New York’s intentionally misspelled pop-up stunt, “Deisel: Go With the Fake,” scored multiple golds. But wise agencies won’t count on clients covering the costs for long.
WPP is no longer the king of Cannes
Here’s one interesting change you might have missed from the closing awards show: Omnicom won Holding Company of the Year, unseating WPP after eight consecutive years on the top. The title simply means the company scored the most points through Lions and shortlists (with BBDO and DDB network agencies certainly racking up notable wins this year), so it’s not a subjective analysis. And the formula was changed a bit this year to give fewer points for quantity of entries and more for big wins. But still, with Sir Martin Sorrell’s exit from WPP still fresh in everyone’s minds, this isn’t exactly the message of enduring fortitude the holding company likely would prefer to send.
Like podcasts? You’ll love these chats from Cannes
In addition to a bevy of articles, Adweek also rolled out three special episodes of our podcast—”Yeah, That’s Probably an Ad”—during our time at Cannes. Be sure to check out our podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your shows. We hosted discussions about encouraging a new generation of women in leadership, how music can define great advertising and the lessons of Nike’s most successful failure, Breaking2. We had a blast and learned a lot recording these episodes, and we think you’ll get a lot out of them.
| |
Top stories from Lions
From innovative marketing to ideas that could improve the world, here’s a full look at the year’s top winners.
“Creativity is genderless, but opportunity is not,” said Free the Bid executive director Emma Reeves.
‘It’s a Tide Ad’ and ‘The Talk’ share top honors in one of the festival’s most high-profile categories.
The ambitious Palau Pledge campaign wins big, netting 3 Grand Prix and 7 total Cannes Lions.
A campaign from AMV BBDO that shatters stigmas around menstruation won this year’s Glass Lion at Cannes.
BMW Dentsu Sydney scored the category’s top prize for ‘Project Revoice.’
The work won gold for Outdoor last year.
Scott announced he will direct ads again for the first time in 20 years.
Fernando Machado on his winning work at Cannes.
The tech behind campaigns can offer insight into different aspects of creativity.
She delivered her speech while wearing black and presenting the award to #BloodNormal.
She says that’s ‘lonely’ and she wants more women to get the award.
| |
| |
 | ||||
| ||||
 | ||||
