The official opening of Cannes, with the presentation of Radio, Media and Out of Home Winners, happened last night, followed by the gala on the beach. After having a pretty strong shortlist for Media – with six finalists going into the awards – it was disappointing that none of us got an elusive Lion.
Admittedly, it was bigger challenge to snag one this year than it was last year, as the number of Lions given out was reduced, after last year’s huge increase. This year’s tally seemed to reflect a better balance in candidates.
The creative agencies dominated the awards again, which is really quite a problem for us media players. It’s a tough playing field given their experience in creating videos about the work and the budgets that still seem to be available for fairly decent production standards. Of the total Media Gold Lions given out almost all went to creative agencies, save for Mindshare in London, UK. It was a bit disillusioning for many of us in attendance – it would be nice if the category could be a clear indication of media agency creativity and innovation on a global scale.
However, the Media Grand Prix winner was very inspiring and is representative of the clear advancement of digital media work this year, given this is the first time the best of show has been claimed by this channel. But overall, I found the Media winners a little less inspiring than usual, although I may change my mind upon further review of the work.
The Publicis/Contagious magazine conference held yesterday also had some inspiring cases and was a popular event. Every seat was taken, and then some, as people crowded in for standing-room only. If you’re not familiar with this group of marketing cool-seekers, check out their website and consider ordering their ‘most contagious campaigns of the year.’ It will keep you ahead of the curve and likely give you a brilliant idea or two of your own. Their presentation featured five or six cases, one of which you may have seen virally for Dulux – how paint became a social cause in transforming low-income housing areas and slums. Obvious, and brilliant.
Lauren Richards is the CEO of Starcom MediaVest Group in Canada. This is her third posting from this year’s festival.
Related stories: Blog: Beach parties and big presentations
Related stories: Blog: Digital is everywhere in Cannes
The Dulux video:
