The good, the bad and the great
The good was the celebrations, definitely. It always is. Celebrating our own wins, celebrating friends from all over the world, celebrating the first-time wins of ambitious young creatives.
It’s what makes Cannes, Cannes.
With Cannes, there is never a bad. It’s the best thing on the annual calendar that we all look forward to.
If I had to, I’d say it’s the fact that we’re going to have to wait another entire trip around the sun to get back there.
The great, is the work. Brand new, fresh, bold, stunningly crafted creative work that set new benchmarks all over again. On a personal level, it was my first experience as Jury President, which was a truly momentous life event for me.
How did it compare to previous years?
It just keeps on getting bigger and better, doesn’t it? I remember my first Cannes nearly two decades ago. It was nowhere near the scale it happens at today. It’s a remarkable sign that we’re all part of a growing, thriving, and constantly evolving global creative industry.
What new trends or themes did you notice at the Festival?
We saw a lot of big brands nod to big cultural moments and have a point of view to become part of the conversation. It’s a reflection of the world we live in, and the fact that brands no longer exist separately of the communities they cater to.
And in that same vein, it was inspiring to see brands open up their most beloved intellectual property – their brandmarks and identities – to interpretation by creators, and embrace the spirit of co-creation to bring forth fun, fresh, and vibrantly diverse creativity.
Finally, the answer cannot be complete without a mention of technology, data, AI and the role all of these are increasingly playing in informing new-age creativity.
Are there any insights or presentations that left a strong impression on you?
There were too many to summarise in a paragraph, but I’ll try!
Right from the greats like Jacques Séguéla who received the Lion of St. Mark at the age of 90 – a true inspiration who still goes into work every day and manages to hold a global audience captive, or Sir John Hegarty laying bare a legendary legacy with charming candor, to an eye-opening presentation by GUT about the realities of running an independent shop.
And then there was Mike Cessario from Liquid Death, who gave the world an “Entertain or Die” ultimatum, while Diana Frost won hearts by showing us how Heinz completely transformed its brand strategies by owning the onus of creativity as clients.
Comedy Is Hard AF was a truly wonderful session on the re-emergence of humour, the production design team of “Poor Things” taught us how creativity in craft can be adopted from outside the industry, Saatchi’s New Creators Showcase featured an AI-generated short film, while Elon Musk brought quite a radical viewpoint on the future of AI to the table.
There was too much that was too good to miss – and thankfully, it’s all available online through the official Cannes Lions website, for everyone to watch and get inspired.
Based on your experience at the festival, what predictions or insights do you have for the future of the industry?
If this year’s Cannes Lions are any indication of it, the future of the industry is bright, transformative, and exciting. We are fortunate to be living in a time when our creativity will find new forms on new frontiers, unlike any before – and its possibilities are there for the taking by anyone who dares to.
By Kalpesh Patankar, CCO, Leo Burnett UAE
