MxMIndia

Tag: Cannes Lions

  • The BBDO entry is particularly ironic though, considering its premise is to question the fake entries that win at global festivals such as Cannes

    BBDO India, Taproot get shortlisted in Film Lions on Day 5 at #CannesLions2015

    By Shephali Bhatt

     

    Only two days for the Cannes Lions festival to come to a close and still no sight of Indian admen, barring a few, anywhere close to the seminar halls. One would conclude the only Indians who are here to attend sessions are the Young Lions. Except we heard one of them say ‘Young Lions’ is just another way of getting an entry to the fest.

     

    Nothing is sacred anymore, we guess. But guess who arrived without notice right in the middle of the day to collect a Grand Prix Lion — BBDO India’s chairman and creative chief Josy Paul and chief executive Ajai Jhala.

     

    “We told Chris (Thomas) there’s no need to courier our Lions, the courier boys are here now,” he said. It’d seem that Paul got off the right side of the plane in the morning because BBDO India’s video for iCONGO titled ‘The World Wants More of A Good Thing’ got a shortlist in Film Lions.

     

    Also shortlisted is Taproot Dentsu’s film for Mumbai Mirror. The BBDO entry is particularly ironic though, considering its premise is to question the fake entries that win at global festivals such as Cannes.

     

    The video is addressed to Terry Savage, chairman of Cannes Lions, in fact. On hearing the news, Jeroninio Almeida, founder of iCONGO said: “I am sure very soon people in award ceremonies will also get conscientious about tracking the veracity of social campaigns created by advertising agencies. The process for change has begun and I am sure we will see impact on a bigger scale very soon. Though it’s ironic I am glad that people who had put in their efforts to help us raise this issue are getting their due recognition.”

     

    Source:The Economic Times

    Copyright © 2015, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. All Rights Reserved

    Licensed to republish

     

  • The ACT Expo at Cannes this year features over 110 pieces of good work from 88 countries

    Seagull’s Polar Bear featured at ACT Responsible Expo at #CannesLions2015

    By A Correspondent

     

    Seagull Advertising’s work done for Thermax Profetherm is the only Indian work to be featured at the Cannes Lions’15 ACT Responsible – a platform that showcases outstanding work with an objective to remain responsible towards the planet.

     

    The ACT Expo at Cannes this year features over 110 pieces of good work from 88 countries and Seagull Advertising’s entry is the only Indian work to be featured in this. This is a showcase of work that is picked from the best around the world by ACT Responsible.

     

    In large enterprises and big office environments, employees are careless about using power judiciously. It’s a common sight to see ACs running in empty conference rooms, lights switched on in departments during off-­duty hours and so on. This irresponsible behaviour not only ends up as huge power bills but also contributes significantly towards global warming. The need thus was to address this issue and fix it. Thermax’s division ProfeTherm, being in the  business of helping its clients save energy and increase profitability, this was the perfect environment to begin the unplugging.

     

    The campaign started by promoting the Unplug message creating powerful creatives showcasing the Polar Bear and other endangered species. This was followed by an activation programme.

     

    A plug point when inverted, resembles a polar bear, one of the few endangered species that would suffer due to global warming. So Thermax ProfeTherm decided to unplug all of its systems and put up these polar bear stickers on existing plug points. Employees, when wanted to plug their computers and systems were flummoxed to see the plug points inverted, only to realise later that it’s actually a sticker. On lifting the sticker the reminder message of being responsible towards the environment got communicated. It was followed up with a message to follow a ’Green Hour’ as a way to pay back to the environment.

     

    As part of the Cannes ACT Expo showcase, Seagull Advertising hopes to contribute its mite in saving the planet by urging people to unplug and ACT responsibly.

     

  • For everyone in the A&M ecosystem, undoubtedly the most prestigious event of the year are the Cannes Lions. Here are some compelling (and some fun) reasons for why you should be at Cannes, courtesy Ajay Kakar, CMO – Financial Services at the Aditya Birla Group

    Ajay Kakar: 10 reasons Cannes is the place to be

    There are adfests and then there are adfests. But for everyone in the A&M ecosystem, undoubtedly the most prestigious event of the year are the Cannes Lions. Here are some compelling (and some fun) reasons for why you should be at this French Riviera town when the biggest awards ceremony kicks off this weekend.

     

    By Ajay Kakar

     

    1. Whether you represent an agency, media or client side of the Marketing Services fraternity, I believe that the Cannes Lions festival is a Mecca for you. It is the melting pot of learning and inspiration. Where else would you get to see, hear and experience the world’s most creative leaders, all under one roof, across all the disciplines of our ecosystem?

     

    2. The festival reflects and represents the ever-changing, ever-evolving times in which we live. It urges you, nudges you and provokes you to at least keep up with the times. And for the few who care or dare, it also inspires you to think ahead of the curve. A festival that, till yesterday, was synonymous with the world of creativity, merely in the context of advertising, today stands for creativity in the context of ideas, big ideas. This year, they have introduced the Innovation Lions, shifting the focus to creativity in innovative big ideas.

     

    3. People who have attended the festival over the years will vouch that this is where they saw and heard the future, first. Yesterday’s dreams, today’s reality. It is at the Cannes Lions that we first heard about what sounded like a make-believe world where — thanks to technology — man will no longer need a map to travel, a directory to search, an encyclopedia to learn and pen and paper to communicate. Today, these predictions have come true and taken for granted; a part of our routine life.

     

    4. Bill Clinton. Al Gore. Ben Affleck. Yoko Ono. Mark Zuckerberg. Sir Martin Sorrel. Freida Pinto. Maurice Levy — a motley of renowned achievers and renowned speakers from various walks of life. From across the world. All under one roof.

     

    5. Why attend? The numbers representing the converts and believers speak for themselves: Over 12,000 delegates, more than 4,000 companies from some 90-odd countries. Convinced yet?

     

    6. It’s not ‎just the agencies that attend. Adidas, Amazon, Audi, Bank of America, BMW, Citi, CNN, HSBC, Heineken, Ikea, ING, Kraft Foods, Levi’s, Nestle, Nike, P&G, Pepsico – the list goes on and on. These are just a few of the corporate giants whose CMOs and marketing teams attend the festival.

     

    7. Unilever and P&G‎. Coke and Pepsi. WPP and Publicis. Where else can you hear and learn from some of the biggest competitors/ business rivals across the world? Only at Cannes, of course.

     

    8. The most sought-after recognition in the world of marketing services is a Cannes Lion. But just winning is not enough to get you on the stage. Only work that earns a Silver or Gold-plus gets to take a bow on the stage. And attending the awards night is a treat. Every evening you can get a glimpse of the work that actually won a Gold, thanks to a two-minute clip for every win. Learnings from the best-of-the-best – work created over 12 months in more than 90 countries, all unfurling before your eyes.

     

    9. As a marketer, you get an opportunity to stand shoulder to shoulder with the people who created the magic. And thanks to the experience, whichever country, category or brand you represent, you go back humbled, realising that there is so much more that can and needs to be done.

     

    10. Whether you represent the agency, the media or the client; whether you are young or experienced, there is something for everyone. So much to choose from. Workshops, seminars, forums, masterclasses, displayed work and of course, networking opportunities, all happen simultaneously. You will always go back feeling unsatisfied‎. Wishing you had more time to imbibe things. And also hoping that you will have the opportunity to be back again, the following year.

     

    Ajay Kakar is CMO – Financial Services at the Aditya Birla Group

     

  • On the shortlists announced on Sunday, there was a no show from India on any of the categories, except Press – which fetched them 18 shortlists – and Direct, which got TBWA a shortlist

    @CannesLions15: Day 1 report: With 945 entries, India eyes bagful of Lions

    By Shephali Bhatt

     

    Delegates of the 62nd Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity were yet to start making their plans for the day via the Cannes app when the awards committee announced shortlists for the Press, Mobile, Innovation, Direct and Promo & Activation categories.

     

    No show from India on any of the categories, except Press — which fetched them 18 shortlists — and Direct, which got TBWA a shortlist.

     

    How many entered in the category? 132 and 74, respectively. A 13 per cent conversion rate in Press and 1.3 per cent in Direct but the percentage doesn’t matter as long as the shortlists go on to win big, says KV Sridhar, chief creative officer of SapientNitro. “People will remember that one great campaign that won across categories and not the number of entries you’d sent,” he adds, citing the example of Duracell’s positive negative stories campaign that won a handful of Lions last year.

     

    With mobile replacing digital in the ‘digital is the future’ prophecy, one would’ve expected some shortlists in the mobile category. “Maybe we are actually not doing enough exciting work in the space just yet. And perhaps rightly so,” says Sanjay Mehta, joint CEO of Social Wavelength and one of the Mobile jurors at the festival. “Whatever got shortlisted, I have truly not seen anything of that calibre in India,” he says.

     

    The total number of entries has also come down this year, marginally so, from 979 to 945. Sridhar, also one of the Press jurors for Cannes Lions this year, attributes this to the declining agency participation in domestic awards. “Only if I play well at domestic cricket do I stand a better chance at excelling at international cricket,” he says.

     

    Advertising isn’t very different in this regard. Agencies like Ogilvy and Lowe have started inhouse awards and Leo Burnett has stopped entering awards with the enthusiasm it used to. “All this comes through in the craft and quality of the work that’s entered at international awards,” he Sridhar. The pressure for validation isn’t the same anymore.

     

    “A lot of work entered to win at Cannes isn’t mainstream work anyway,” notes Grey’s Dheeraj Sinha. Only a matter of 24 hours (until the awards ceremony) before we find whether India is on its way to equalling or topping a great run last year.

     

    Source:The Economic Times

    Copyright © 2015, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. All Rights Reserved

    Licensed to republish

     

  • The previous year was a horrible one for us. Annus Horribilis, we called it. Twenty-fifteen was pretty good in comparison. Even if the bucks hadn't turned big, the mood was upbeat. The annual year-end letter from Pradyuman Maheshwari

    Letter from MxMIndia: A Year of Consolidation

    So how was 2014 for us at MxMIndia?

     

    The previous year was a horrible one for us. Annus Horribilis, we called it.

     

    Twenty-fifteen was pretty good in comparison. Even if the bucks hadn’t turned big, the mood was upbeat. We hate to admit it, but the ‘achche din aane waale hain’ slogan did change the mood of the nation.

     

    Many may not have forgiven those responsible for Gujarat 2002, but then there was Delhi 1984 and several other communal and civil unrests initiated by various political and community leaders. So even as it’s not right to condone the perpetrators of any riot, the blessed souls from across the spectrum are all the same.  It was the cry for rooting out corruption from the Narendra Modi and the BJP camp that caught the imagination of the nation.

     

    The news media was looking up. Their coffers -for many of them, if not all – were being filled legitimately and under the table. In my interaction with some politicians and newspaper biggies, I learnt how it was done. And how it was impossible to nail a publication. Unless and until one does something silly like this former chief minister…

     

    Twenty-fourteen saw the best and worst in the advertising business. Self-regulator ASCI has gotten hyperactive, Goafest, our version of the Cannes Lions, was saved from a no-show. An industry  association like the India chapter of the International Advertising Association was super-active. The Ad Club expanded its Abby Awards. And there was the birth of an all-new awards show  in the form of Kyoorius.

     

    There was some experimentation on the television scene even as the GECs went on their great ratings run. Zindagi, a channel with re-runs of Pakistani serials, may not have attracted GVTs in large numbers, but it was a winner idea. Sports television grew considerably with Star India putting its might behind the various leagues. Epic, the independent channel funded by Mukesh Ambani and Anand Mahindra, finally took off. Pal, the second Hindi GEC, didn’t take off very well despite the blitz.

     

    As for print, it isn’t dying. In fact it’s been proliferating. Not just in the regions (or the ‘unmetros’) and in Hindi, but in English too.  Radio is still waiting for its Phase III and news, but smart content strategy like BIG FM did with its retro-fication of some stations worked wonders.

     

    And what do we say for digital. It’s here, there and everywhere. A quarter of our billion-plus populace is connected with more than five million smartphones being added every month. Yet, digital is not going to the #1 media even in 2017, as per one study. And we don’t know what’s going to happen later.

     

    The big attraction in the media is integration. Along with BTL and social media, there is much focus on orchestrating an integrated campaign for maximum. Quite like the way Prime Minister Modi did in the run-up to the elections.

     

    The downer of the year has been the Indian Readers hip Survey. It’s sad to see otherwise outstanding professionals unable to come up with a measurement system that will be mutually acceptable. The new measurement regime under BARC is set to launch in April 2015, and one hopes that the television ecosystem handles it more maturely.

     

    As for MxM, we are happy that we are beign counted for our content. Regrettably, not as much for our business and sales. But that, we hope, will happen.

     

    We are looking forward to Twenty-fifteen. Warmest wishes for the year ahead.

     

    Pradyuman Maheshwari

    Editor-in-Chief and CEO

    MxMIndia

     

  • The third edition of the annual Summit for PR and corp comm professionals starts today in Agra. An interview with event founder and mentor Amith Prabhu

    The Promise of Better PR at Praxis

     

    By Pradyuman Maheshwari

     

    Not many moons ago, MxMIndia requested Amith Prabhu, earlier head of communications at Vivaki (Publicis Groupe) and then working at the Edelman office in Chicago to write an article on how Indian PR agencies had fared miserably at the Cannes Lions advertising awards. He then mooted the idea of a Lions-like conference for the PR industry, and even as we spoke with him to co-organise it, he had taken the lead with his friends to take things forward.

     

    We stepped back and offered him all the possible support in the effort, and are happy to report that the third edition of Praxis, as the PR conference is called, is being held starting today (September 12) in the historic city of Agra.

     

    So while MxMIndia is media partner, that didn’t prevent us from posing some ticklish questions to Amith Prabhu, founder and chief mentor of the event. Amith was not too keen on being interviewed and said the co-chairs of the conference should be doing the talking, but we could finally prevail upon him with an understanding that his pic will not appear as the Big Story image. Pssst, we’ve still sneaked in this headshot. We’ll try and feign ignorance. Read on…

     

    Pondicherry (or Puducherry), Lavasa and now Agra. How will the third edition of Praxis be different from the previous two?

    Each summit is unique in different ways. Praxis 2014 caters primarily to the professionals in the NCR. We call it the super, smarter, slicker edition. The theme is Communicating for a Better World and the focus is CSR. We have nearly 30 speakers of which eight are are international.

     

    In many ways it was for you a dream to build this forum for early and mid-career professionals. Do you think you’ve been able to achieve what you had set out to? Or is it still mission unaccomplished?

    From 250 professionals in the first edition, 22 months ago to almost 350 this time around we have come a long way. A large chunk of participants from both consultancies and in-house are young and raring to go. We want this to be THE forum that professionals of all levels head to every year and we have managed to achieve that.

     

    And would you say that the PR industry and professionals have gained from this?

    I still like to believe we are not an industry but a growing community of very smart professionals. These forums help celebrate the profession. It is for those who attend to say if they have gained or not. The response this year has been overwhelming which makes us believe we are on the right track.

     

    The format though is still very short, right. Like in this year’s edition, just as people would’ve warmed up, it’s time to say your goodbyes?

    Time is at a premium. We have experimented with an additional night in the second edition but the feedback was that it should be optional because half the time we are dealing with client crises which allows for minimal time commitment outside work.

     

    Why not have a longer format? Because it’s just an incremental extra hotel night that people have to pay for, na? You’ve already got them out of their office and spend on travel?

    As I mentioned earlier, time is at a premium for PR professionals. We have had 15% drop-outs in the last 5 days, especially from clients who would have been over 100 at the summit but are now about 85 at the summit because work exigencies. We offered an option for those who wanted to learn from experts to stay back a second night and attend the workshop at an additional fee. So it is really not shorter in the true sense. Also, an additional night would cost Rs 10,000 more on an average which we felt younger professionals would find hard to bear.

     

    Has this South-West-North rotation of venues worked? What will you have next year… East? How about a Praxis in Bangkok, Nepal or somewhere cheap and still away from it all?

    We are open to having Praxis in the Eastern part of India or even in another country which does not require visas. We are exploring that option. Hopefully, when the third edition ends the team of volunteers may have a location for 2015. Someday, we will plan it overseas for sure.

     

    There is a cross-section of top professionals who’ve been giving Praxis a miss? Dilip Cherian, for instance. Various veteran corporate communications professionals.  Comments?

    Like several other leaders, Dilip Cherian has been invited every year and we are hoping to convince him hard enough to be there next year. This year, the CEO of his firm will be chairing a session. We have nine of the Top 10 firms and 18 of the Top 20 firms present in India that are represented. Unlike most events of this kind that are organised by associations we are just a bunch of volunteers with full-time jobs who put this together. Given that, there are six firms participating for the first time this year which is an achievement. One Founder is making his stage debut in a public forum, though his firm has been around for 20 years, which is amazing.

     

    Also, I was just speaking to the CEO of a Mumbai-based PR firm Who was sadly just not aware of the forum. Would you say this is ignorance on the part of the CEO or still miles to go for Praxis (and the Promise Foundation) to promote the conference?

    We would not say it is either. If you were speaking to the CEO, he or she has now heard of it ;-). Sur summit has been built on word of mouth and primarily on social networks. We have a long way to go as a community. The Summit was sold out a month ago and we decided to increase the number from 300 to 330 which is 10% of the 3000 professionals in the country.

     

    So a little about this year: standout, must-attend sessions?

    We have the mother of cause marketing, Carol Cone, who is Edelman’s global practice chair of the CSR practice who has flown all the way from New York to deliver the opening keynote. Paul Holmes will do the second keynote on the Consultancy of the Future.  These are not to be missed. The other stand-out sessions are a presentation on Measuring Metrics and four panels – one by millenials, one by CSR experts, one celebrating Founders of India’s iconic firms and one with regional chiefs of PR firms.

     

    If you were given to chance to go back three years and re-curate Praxis, would you do it differently?

    Each Summit has been planned with learning from the previous one and built with passion. We are proud of the fact that we do not have more than one speaker from an organisation and that we typically do not repeat speakers. We also follow a cooperative sponsorship model where partnering companies pay our vendors directly. What we can do better is to make more Indian professionals in the middle east and far east attend.

     

    Is the organisation of Praxis really a collective, cooperative effort finally? Wouldn’t you want to give the job to an event organiser to do it on a professional basis?

    Praxis began as a movement and continues to remain so. The commitment of some of us is for ten editions. An event manager still helps put together the final look of the conference. With or without an event manager, we are a professionally run social enterprise. But the personal touch can only be there when those who conceptualised it, remain at the forefront of driving it. We are a dozen professionals who ideate virtually and come together at the summit to bring the event to life. The uniqueness is that the 12 volunteers represent 12 different organisations – some PR firms and some corporations.
    So what’s driving the organisers like yourself and others to spend a huge amount of time, effort and possibly monies to organise Praxis?

     

    People and passion for the profession are the cornerstones of this initiative. We needed to bring back the reputation to the profession that had begun to get affected by two important events – the controversy of 2010 that led to one of the largest firm shutting shop and the fact that almost all of the Top 20 global firms making their presence felt in India by the beginning of this decade. One would have worked for a non-profit, but instead we decided that we will create a non-profit that builds reputation for the profession. So here we are!

     

  • Several creative leaders in India are increasingly vocal about missing the forest of creativity for the trees of a final tally

    Gunning for more ad awards, creativity loses plot

    By Ravi Balakrishnan

     

    A little over a decade ago, when the Abby awards were still the only show in town, the after party found Prasoon Joshi in a pensive mood. As team Ogilvy celebrated their ‘agency of the year’ win with a characteristic lack of subtlety – drums, horns, and people in black posing for interminable photoshoots – Mr Joshi, then early in his stint at Mc-Cann Erickson reasoned, “There are youngsters from many agencies who’ve won their first trophy tonight. But all of that is being forgotten in this obsession with who won most. We should celebrate the work and not the numbers.”

     

    Mr Joshi may have been among the first to voice this concern, but he’s far from the last. Several creative leaders in India are increasingly vocal about missing the forest of creativity for the trees of a final tally.

     

    Festivals like Cannes Lions have arguably made things worse, adding layers to the competition like Holding Company of the Year. WPP won for the fourth time running in 2014, which according to media reports led Interpublic to boast of its far better win to entry ratio. Closer home, Goafest officially scrapped ‘agency of the year’, ostensibly to make it more about the work and less about the numbers. It however resulted in a cottage industry where previously math-phobic creatives sliced and diced the numbers till they were left with a rank that satisfied them.

     

    Apart from no year being complete without some controversy, protest or conspiracy theory, the numbers game is tainting large parts of the industry.

     

    Remember all the worldwide chief creative officers who’ve lashed out against scams? Creative directors in their employ will tell you, off the record of course, that the scamming happens entirely with their approval, frequently on their insistence. Truth be told, it’s hard to say no when even a laggard that gets lucky and scores bronze adds one more to the total tally. It’s resulted in a business where scams are the worst thing to happen only so long as you get caught.

     

    The judging process too is compromised as long as tallies – official or unofficial – continue to be important. Says Bobby Pawar, chief creative officer, Publicis, “Judges may be more open to acknowledging how they feel about a piece of work when voting for it doesn’t make them losers. When you have younger people on the jury who haven’t won that much, it’s hard (for them) to be charitable.” In every award jury, if some industry folk are to be believed, there are people wondering “what’s in it for me?”

     

    With the role of tallies coming into question, the Gunn Report is perceived to be the biggest villain of the piece. Started in 1999 by former Leo Burnett adman Donald Gunn, it’s currently the largest, most authoritative source of league table on ad agencies. The 2013 edition considered 46 award shows – global, regional and national. While undoubtedly a definitive source of information on the varying creative fortunes of agencies, doing well in the Report has become an unhealthy obsession.

     

    Mr Pawar says sardonically, “It’s a great idea – for Donald Gunn. Or CEOs and creative guys looking to put notches on the belt. I don’t think it’s a good idea for work. Let’s not reduce creativity to accounting because that’s what these things do.” Adds a creative chief who wishes to remain anonymous, “I know the networks love Gunn but does the report motivate me to break the mould? Is it inspirational?

     

    Or just an impotent report card?” The latter has no place in an industry that’s playing it fast and loose, finding ideas from unlikely sources, some of whom are not agencies. The Gunn Report had not responded to our questions at the time of going to print.

     

    The alternative: Let the year be remembered not for who scored the maximum but for the best work. Irrespective of where it came from or what else the agencies who created those pieces won. In spite of being the top ranked Indian shop by Gunn this year, Mr Joshi, currently president – South Asia, McCann Worldgroup continues to have a purist perspective.

     

    “The creative world is more like a garden than a wrestling ring. We shouldn’t be trying to outshine each other but to complement each other. People will say ‘here comes Prasoon again with his poetry’, but I’ve said this since I was in school. Every child is unique but the moment you ask ‘kitne number aaye?’ you make him start thinking in those terms.”

     

    However, in spite of these pious and occasionally poetic sentiments, it’s unlikely that tallies are going anywhere. Because as KV Sridhar aka Pops, chief creative officer at SapientNitro points out Gunn and accounting are unnecessarily being pilloried. For one, the report is a lot more nuanced, measuring both the width as well as depth of wins.

     

    At worst, it represents a deeper malaise: “Gone are the days when creative people were obsessed with peer recognition. Awards are now more about business development. There’s nothing wrong (in wanting to win big) since this is how advertising agencies sell themselves. It’s both for the benefit of new marketers and to tell your existing clients ‘we’ve still got it.’”

     

    The obsession with tallies is less about creative oneupmanship. Says Mr Sridhar, “It’s the obsession of people like Martin Sorrell and Maurice Levy. It’s a global diktat to every agency since this is how a brand seeking to enter the country decides on who to start talking to. Every country head is measured by creative reputation as much as bottomline. If you deliver 21 per cent instead of 23 per cent you are sacked, but if you’ve got a creative reputation with 21 per cent, you get your bonus.”

     

    And so what it comes down to is this; when the agency man’s stuck at the wrong end of the barrel, even the most virtuous will start Gunning for more awards. Don’t blame the player, blame the game.

     

    Source:The Economic Times

    Copyright © 2014, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. All Rights Reserved

    Licensed to republish

     

  • India gets just 27 metals at Cannes Lions, but wins in Cyber & Mobile herald good news

    Mediocre performance by India @ Cannes Lions

     

    By Sandeep Puraname

     

    The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, the world’s leading celebration of creativity in communications, has announced the final winners that will take home trophies from the 2014 awards.

     

    India drew a blank at the Titanium and Integrated category which was presided over by Prasoon Joshi, Chairman, CEO, Chief Creative Officer, India/South Asia, McCann Worldgroup. However, the good news is that Indian entries earned metals in the Cyber and Mobile categories. After having drawn a blank in these two categories over the years, winning here was critical given that both media vehicles are growing worldwide, as well as in India where the smartphone and internet penetration has leapfrogged over the years.

     

     

    The awards presented at the final evening ceremony were:

    Lion of St. Mark to Joe Pytka in recognition of his outstanding contribution to creativity in advertising and communications

     

    Agency of the Year was given to Adam&EveDDB, London. Dentsu, Tokyo came second and AlmapBBDO, São Paulo third.

     

    Independent Agency of the Year went to Forsman & Bodenfors, Gothenburg. Second place went to Lemz, Amsterdam and third to Wieden + Kennedy, Portland.

     

    The Palme d’Or, given to the most awarded production company, was presented to MJZ, USA. O Positive Films, USA came second and Outsider, UK third.

     

    The Network of the Year award was presented to Ogilvy & Mather with BBDO taking second place and DDB in third.

     

    The inaugural Regional Network of the Year winners were announced as:

    APAC -BBDO

    EMEA – DDB
    North America – BBDO
    South America – Ogilvy & Mather

     

    Also awarded was the Holding Company of the Year which went to WPP. Omnicom took second place and Publicis third.

     

    The coveted Creative Marketer of the Year trophy was presented to McDonald’s in honour of their consistency in placing creativity at the heart of its advertising and communications and distinguishing themselves by inspiring innovative marketing of their products. Steve Easterbrook, Senior Executive Vice President and Global Chief Brand Officer, was present to collect the accolade.

     

    The winners of the Young Lions Film Competition were also announced, with the Bulgarian team, Vladimir Gerasimov and Zhelez Atanasov winning the Gold medal.

     

    The Young Marketers Competition saw the dedicated jury award the team from Russia, Marisol Diaz Rozic and Marianela Frick from Pepsico, with the Gold medal.

     

    Cannes Lions was been attended by 12,000 delegates and seen seven days of non-stop content delivered by more than 500 speakers, over 37,400 pieces of work showcased at the Festival, inspirational academies, seven young lions competitions, four awards shows, two galas and unrivalled networking opportunities throughout. Visit the Cannes Lions YouTube page, http://www.youtube.com/user/canneslions, to catch up on the highlights of the week or the official website, www.canneslions.com, to view the winners of the 61st Cannes Lions awards.

     

  • There is some gloom in the Indian camp as last year Indian entries had bagged 32 awards

    Just 22 metals so far, but it’s not over yet at the Cannes Lions

    By Delshad Irani

     

    With 22 gongs, one would have thought the Indian contingent at Cannes would be rejoicing. Compared to last year, when India had bagged 32 trophies by this time in the festival, the mood in 2014 is veering towards gloom that even the sun, sand and beauty on display cannot entirely dissipate.

     

    But as one ad agency head says, “There’s still a long way to go in the game. It’s like football; anything can happen in the last 15 minutes.” Of course, the Indian ad industry’s hopes were lifted when Hindustan Unilever’s ‘Kan Khajura Tesan’ bagged three Gold Lions on Tuesday. Interestingly, while what is essentially a radio station in Bihar got the country its hoard of gold, the Radio category didn’t feature a single Indian agency win.

     

    And now JWT India has made its appearance on the leader board with three metals – one Silver and two Bronze Lions in the Cyber category and all for the same work – Nike’s ‘Make Every Yard Count’.

     

    The other winner in Cyber is Grey Worldwide India, which got a Bronze Lion for its work on Duracell Batteries.

     

    Historically one of India’s strongest showings has been in Press, the most traditional of advertising media and categories at Cannes Lions. This year India had 152 entries in total, but only 6 made the shortlist (last year, it was 37) and 2 won metals this year. There’s a Gold Lion for Grey Worldwide India for Duracell Batteries and a Bronze Lion to JWT for Godrej Security Solutions. In Design, Ogilvy’s got its first Gold Lion of the season for their work on Cleft To Smile – Operation Smile India and McCann has added another Bronze Lion to its haul.

     

    Three Grand Prix were awarded in the Cyber category at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. Taking home one of the three top prizes at Cannes in Cyber is ‘Live Test Series’ for Volvo Trucks or “the truck ad with Jean Claude Van Damme doing the split,” by Swedish agency Forsman & Bodenfors Gothenburg. The other Grand Prix takers are ‘The Scarecrow’ for Chipotle Mexican Grill, and ’24 hours of Happy’ by Pharrell Williams.

     

    Source:The Economic Times

    Copyright © 2014, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. All Rights Reserved

    Licensed to republish

     

  • AAAI has announced the winners of its Young Lions Competitions in Creative (Print), Media and Marketers categories

    AAAI announces the winners of Young Lions Competitions

    By a correspondent

     

    The Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAAI) has announced the winners of its Young Lions Competitions in Creative (Print), Media and Marketers categories.

     

    The winning teams included: Young Lions Creative Competition that was won by Gaurav Joshi & Siddharth Joglekar from Publicis India, Mumbai for “Come forward and help crime and accident victims”; Young Lions Media Competition that was won by Chinmay Kelkar & Rohan Sood from MediaCom, Mumbai for “Don’t bribe and kill the nation”; and Young Lions Marketers Competition that was won by Samyukta Iyer & Janvi Parekh from Hindustan Unilever, Mumbai for “A premium brand enters a traditional Indian category of hair oil but Indians are not willing to pay the premium. What Ad strategy should they use?”

     

    The jury for Creative Competition comprised Josy Paul (Chairman and National Creative Director, BBDO India), K S Chakravarthy (National Creative Director, FCB Ulka), Bobby Pawar (Director, Chief Creative Officer – South Asia, Publicis India) in Phase-I and Haresh Moorjani (Creative Director, FCB Ulka), Bobby Pawar (Director, Chief Creative Officer – South Asia, Publicis India), Nandan Srinath (Director-Response, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd) and Vinod Nair (Managing Director, Network Advertising) in Phase-II.

     

    For Media, the jury comprised Dinesh Vyas (General Manager, India-Planning, MEC), Anand Chakravarthy (Head-West, Maxus), Sujata Dwibedy (Vice President, Starcom India), Deepak Netram (Vice President, Lodestar UM) in the Phase-I and Sam Balsara (Chairman & Managing Director, Madison Communications), Jasmin Sohrabji (Managing Director, Radeus Advertising) in the final phase.

     

    The jury of Marketers Competition comprised Ajay Kakar (Chief Marketing Officer-Financial Services, Aditya Birla Group), Deepali Naair (Chief Marketing Officer, Mahindra Holidays & Resorts), Rohit Srivastava (Core Consulting and National Head of Strategic Planning, Contract Advertising), Nandan Srinath (Director-Response, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd), Vinod Nair (Managing Director, Network Advertising) and the Marketers competition was conducted under the leadership of Dr M G Parameswaran, Advisor, FCB Ulka.

     

    These competitions conducted by AAAI, supported by The Times Group, had invited participation of young creative people, under 28 years of age, from Advertising Agencies (for Creative) young media professionals, under 28 years of age, from Advertising/Media Agencies (for Media) and young marketing professionals, under 30 years of age, from client organisations/Advertisers (for Marketers). In all 250 entries were received for these competitions.

     

    The winning teams will be flying to France in the month of June this year to participate in the prestigious Young Lions Competitions in Cannes Lions.

     

  • Cannes announces jury list for Cyber, Design and Direct Lions categories

    Juries for Cyber, Design and Direct Lions announced by Cannes

    By a correspondent

     

    The organisers of the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, the largest global annual awards celebrating excellence in creative communications, have announced members of an additional three juries set to participate at this year’s event for the Cyber, Design and Direct Lions categories.

     

    Commenting on the jury line-up, Philip Thomas, CEO of Lions Festivals said, “The prestige associated with winning a Lion is largely a result of the calibre of the professionals judging the work. It is therefore fitting to have such a formidable group of industry experts, who will no doubt help inspire and advance the global communications industry with the outcome of their deliberations. We very much look forward to welcoming them all to Cannes in June.”

     

    The juries will be chaired by Susan Bonds, Chief Executive Officer, 42 Entertainment, USA (Cyber Lions); Karl Heiselman, Chief Executive Officer, Wolff Olins, USA (Design Lions); and James McGrath, Creative Chairman, Clemenger BBDO Melbourne, Australia (Direct Lions).

     

    Three Indians have made it to the list including Meera Sharath Chandra, Founder Chief Executive Officer & Chief Creative Officer, Tigress Tigress, India in the Cyber category; Mangesh Rane, Founder Director, Open Strategy & Design, India in the Design category; and Rajat Sethi, Partner, Strategic Caravan International, India in the Direct category.

     

  • The jury members will meet in Cannes to judge work in the new Product Design, Film, Media and Promo & Activation Lions categories

    Cannes announces jury list for four categories

    By a correspondent

     

    The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity has announced the members of a further four juries who will meet in Cannes to judge work in the new Product Design,  Film, Media and Promo & Activation Lions categories.

     

    Commenting on the formidable jury line-up including the new Product Design Lions jury, Terry Savage, Chairman of Lions Festivals, said, “As a global festival celebrating the best creative ideas in brand communications, it is important to embrace all facets of this ever-changing industry, and as such we very much look forward to welcoming the members of the first ever Product Design Lions jury to Cannes Lions along with all our other juries. By judging and awarding only the very best work using integrity, commitment and unbeatable industry knowledge, this esteemed group of industry professionals selected for these juries, will ultimately help drive the industry forward on a global scale.”

     

    As implemented last year, there will be a two-stage judging process for the Media Lions category. A 40-strong jury of media professionals from around the world will be divided into eight sub-groups of five people tasked to cast the first round of votes that will determine the shortlist. Jury president Matt Seiler, Global CEO of IPG Mediabrands, will spend time with each sub-group but will not vote during this first round. At the second voting stage, the shortlist will be judged and the winners selected by the Awarding Jury made up of 13 media industry leaders including the jury president.

     

    The three other juries will be led by Amir Kassaei, Chief Creative Officer, DDB Worldwide, USA (Film Lions); Susan Credle, Chief Creative Officer, Leo Burnett, USA (Promo & Activation Lions) and Donghoon Chang, Executive Vice President, Samsung Electronics, South Korea (Product Design Lions).

     

    Amir Kassaei, Chief Creative Officer, DDB Worldwide, USA is the Jury President for the Film category while Matt Seiler, Global Chief Executive Officer, IPG Mediabrands, is the Global - Jury President + Awarding Jury for the Media category.

     

    Susan Credle, Chief Creative Officer, Leo Burnett, USA is the Jury President for Promo & Activation while Donghoon Chang, Executive Vice President, Samsung Electronics, South Korea is the Jury President for Product Design category.