Canucks in Cannes nab Lions

There will be Canucks celebrating on the Croisette tonight, as two Media Lions and one gold in Direct were just nabbed by Canadian agencies in Cannes. Toronto-based The Media Company and Cossette Media won a Media Lion apiece for their campaigns 'Is Your Lipstick Still On?' (Covergirl) and 'Nike Speed' respectively. Meanwhile, Montreal-based Diesel Canada clinched a Gold Lion for its work for Guru Bicycle Corp.

Doug Checkeris, president and CEO of The Media Company and a Media judge at Cannes, says he is thrilled to have a Lion under his belt this year. (TMC was also shortlisted for Nokia's 'Hello Toronto' campaign.) 'The Covergirl campaign was simple genius,' he says. 'It had a great consumer insight and access (to the target).' The effort incorporated chips being imbedded in washroom mirrors to communicate with women in bars and clubs. As a judge, Checkeris saw 400 of the 1,100 total media entries and says the winning initiatives demonstrated a clear insight into the consumer, were engaging as well as scaleable and also had the results to prove their effectiveness. 'There are no new ideas, the question is what makes an application more creative,' he adds.
By Staff 
June 21, 2005

There will be Canucks celebrating on the Croisette tonight, as two Media Lions and one gold in Direct were just nabbed by Canadian agencies in Cannes. Toronto-based The Media Company and Cossette Media won a Media Lion apiece for their campaigns ‘Is Your Lipstick Still On?’ (Covergirl) and ‘Nike Speed’ respectively. Meanwhile, Montreal-based Diesel Canada clinched a Gold Lion for its work for Guru Bicycle Corp.

Doug Checkeris, president and CEO of The Media Company and a Media judge at Cannes, says he is thrilled to have a Lion under his belt this year. (TMC was also shortlisted for Nokia’s ‘Hello Toronto’ campaign.) ‘The Covergirl campaign was simple genius,’ he says. ‘It had a great consumer insight and access (to the target).’ The effort incorporated chips being imbedded in washroom mirrors to communicate with women in bars and clubs. As a judge, Checkeris saw 400 of the 1,100 total media entries and says the winning initiatives demonstrated a clear insight into the consumer, were engaging as well as scaleable and also had the results to prove their effectiveness. ‘There are no new ideas, the question is what makes an application more creative,’ he adds.

Meanwhile, Roehl Sanchez, VP/CD of Blitz Direct, Data and Promotion, was on the Lions Direct jury. He describes Diesel’s ‘Devoted’ campaign for Guru as being perfectly executed. (The effort included a guerrilla component where banners were hung on bike frames, driving the target to a Web site with a mock religious theme. It was based on the insight that high-end bike users are devoted to cycling.)

All golds are considered for the prestigious Grand Prix title (which went to Renault Nissan in Germany for an effort that drove TV viewers to the Web); but Sanchez says the Canadian agency fell short because while the work was immaculately designed and executed, it did not break new ground.

Diesel was the only Canuck agency to be shortlisted in the category, a fact that Sanchez finds disappointing. But even worse, he says, is that his time on the jury has taught him that Canada is far from being at the forefront of DM. ‘Canada is so behind – in terms of what the clients will buy and also what our industry preaches. I still get invited to conferences about how to make an infomercial. We need to catch up.’