CANNES, FRANCE — It was a big week for creativity all over the world with Cannes in the center of all the action. Dubbed as the “olympics” of advertising, the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity gathered the most respected leaders from the industry’s biggest corporations in celebrating creativity through talks and the much-coveted awards – and tonight, the last leg of the show wraps up the week’s festivities with even more awards and even more celebrations.
The Grand Prix Lion, the highest award per category, was given to 4 campaigns tonight: “The Truth is Worth it” by Droga5, “Whopper Detour” by FCB, “The Lions Share” by Clemenger BBDO & Finch and “The Last Ever Issue” by VMYL&R.
Check out the Grand Prix campaigns of the night:
Film Lions
Grand Prix: “Rigor”, “Perseverance”, “Resolve”, “Courage”, and “Fearlessness” by Droga5 New York for The New York Times The Truth Is Worth It Campaign
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=2&v=PZJdKuTRN5E
Dominating the track this season is a series of short films created by Droga5 for The New York Times, where they dissect how journalists followed and developed some of the most controversial stories of the period. The series, called “The Truth Is Worth It” won its first Grand Prix award for Film Craft Lions, and now has won its second Grand Prix title this time for Film Lions.
Each film talks about the importance of pursuing truth, and how the alternative to truth is really a lie. It also touches on the dangers of being a journalist, especially in times of political unrest, conflict, and proliferation of misinformation.
- “Behind the Mac — Make Something Wonderful” by TBWA/Media Arts Lab, Los Angeles for Apple
- “The Boy and the Piano” by adam&eveDDB, London for John Lews & Partners Christmas
- “The Endless Ad” by Wieden+Kennedy São Paulo for P&G and Old Spice
- “Viva La Vulva” by AMVBBDO, London for Essity Libresse/Bodyform
A total of 77 Lions were given under the Film Lions category with 1 Grand Prix, 11 Gold, 28 Silver, and 37 Bronze. View and download the full list of winners here.
Sustainable Development Goals Lions
Grand Prix: “The Lions Share” by Clemenger BBDO & Finch for Mars Australia.
The campaign calls on different companies to join a fund they are building in partnership with the United Nations Development Programme, wherein partners will be allocating 0.5% of their advertising expenses to donate to the fund and raise money to help preserve and protect different animals and their habitats. Tapping broadcaster and natural historian Sir David Attenborough to explain the importance of the campaign, and how the fund will be used. The campaign has so far been able to draw in partnerships with Humane Society International and JCDecaux.
Other campaigns that won gold with the Sustainable Development Goals Lions include:
- “The Open Door Project” by FCBULKA, Delhi for The Millennium School
- “Gracie AI” by BBDO Atlanta for Street Grace
- “Morse Code for GBoard” by Google Creative Lab NY for Google
Under the Sustainable Development Goals Lions, 22 awards were given in total: 1 Grand Prix, 3 Gold, 7 Silver and 11 Bronze. View the full list of winners here.
Titanium Lions
Grand Prix: “Whopper Detour” by FCB for Burger King
Titanium Lions is a category that was created to recognize “out-of-the-box” ideas that is both bold and provocative, but brings results and pushes the industry forward. And the fast food chain’s Whopper Detour checks out all the boxes for a Titanium Grand Prix win. After all, the campaign was so bold it almost seemed like a prank. Fernando Machado, Burger King’s Chief Marketing Officer, explained that the Whopper Detour was a defining campaign for them, which would pave the way to other successful campaigns. The whole initiative was built around the idea of having people go to a McDonald’s to order a Whopper (which of course you can’t do). If they do, they get a huge discount when they arrive at a nearby Burger King branch.
Other campaigns that received Titanium Lions include:
- “Changing the Game” by McCann New York for Microsoft
- “Nike Dream Crazy” by Wieden+Kennedy, Portland for Nike
- “Viva La Vulva” by AMVBBDO London for Essity
- “The Uncensored Playlist” by DDB Berlin for Reporters Without Borders
- “The Last Ever Issue” by VMLY&R Poland for Gazeta.PL, Mastercard, and BNP Paribas
Only 6 Lions were given tonight under the Titanium category with 1 Grand Prix and 5 Titanium Lions. Check out the full list here.
Glass: The Lion for Change
Grand Prix: “The Last Ever Issue” by VMYL&R for Gazeta.pl, Mastercard, and BNP Paribas
This year, winning the Grand Prix award is a campaign that saw an opportunity as a men’s magazine was about to close and bought it to change its identity at least for its very last print. VMYL&R and Gazeta.pl’s “The Last Ever Issue” bought of Your Weekend, Poland’s longest running men’s magazine. For 27 years, the magazine published racy photos of women that objectified their bodies, propagating a culture of sexism and gender inequality. But after partnering up with Mastercard and BNP Paribas, the group bought off the magazine, and changed the contents. Instead of selling sex, the magazine became about women empowerment, gender equality, proper sex education, and more.
The Glass: The Lion for Change Gold winner:
- “Viva La Vulva” by AMVBBDO for Libresse/Bodyform
This year, 8 awards were given under the Glass: The Lion for Change category with 1 Gold, 2 Silver and 4 Bronze Lions being given out. For the full list of winners, click here.
