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CANNES LIONS has announced the participants for the 2024 See It Be It talent acceleration programme for women. Nineteen creatives, from 14 markets, have been selected to take part in the four-day programme, which takes place under the umbrella of the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity (June 17-21, 2024). The class of 2024 will enjoy mentorship opportunities, private masterclasses with industry leaders, as well as backstage access and session invitations tailored to each participant’s career goals. This year’s Alumni Tutor is Daniela Varela, creative director, TBWA\Chiat\Day, who will work with See It Be It programme ambassador, Madonna Badger. In this, the 10th anniversary of See It Be It, Varela said: “Joining the journey of this year’s cohort is an incredible joy and a huge responsibility. They represent the programme’s 10 year legacy: a global collective of talent, inspiration and leadership that fosters and enables the change we still need to nurture in our industry.” Since its inception, See It Be It has brought together over 120 women and non-binary people, from 33 markets. This year’s cohort will include participants from Kazakhstan, Kenya and Thailand for the first time. Madonna Badger, who is also founder/CEO/COO, Badger Agency, said: “These exceptional creative women are reshaping the future of our industry and redefining what is possible. Their resolve to pursue excellence, break barriers and drive positive change is awe-inspiring.”

CANNES LIONS’ annual state of creativity report has painted a mixed picture for the industry. The report, based on 3000 global responses from industry stakeholders, found that 51% of brands and agencies anticipate stronger growth in 2024 than 2023. At the same time, however, it identified “significant strain” in the client–agency relationship, while marketers are frustrated by their own ‘play-it-safe’ leadership. Download the full report here Discussing the study, which is titled Communication Breakdown On The Road To Recovery, Lions senior vice-president, business lead, advisory Spencer Fox said: “Although the sentiment is outwardly optimistic, inwardly the industry is at odds. There’s optimism around progress and investment, but tensions that need to be worked through if we’re going to realise the potential of creativity as a growth driver.” Picking up on the state of client-agency relations, the study identified “glaring discrepancies” in how brands experience the agency–client relationship compared with their agency partners. When asked about the partnership, brands expressed a more positive attitude towards it, while creative partners painted a starkly different picture. With the LIONS International Festival of Creativity just a couple of months away, the survey suggests brands and agencies need to take a leaf out of their own book, developing the kind of high-quality communications that will be on show in Cannes.

THE UK’s CHANNEL 4 Sales has unveiled the results of its latest Sponsorship Rocks study, which it claims is “the most comprehensive analysis of broadcast sponsorship effectiveness ever conducted”. The study’s dataset, “twice the size of the previous iteration of Sponsorship Rocks in 2017, now incorporates streaming data, creative coding, plus Barb reach and frequency data – offering unparalleled insights for brands.” Rupinder Downie, sponsorship and commercial partnerships leader, Channel 4 Sales, said: “This study highlights how well sponsorships allow brands to draw on broadcasters’ content, creativity and innovation. The debate around brand safety continues across all media platforms, so it is encouraging to see research which shows broadcast sponsorship provides a reliable, transparent and effective platform.” Channel 4 commissioned research agency Consumer Insight to aggregate effectiveness results from almost 240 sponsorships, including 666 of waves of research that involved speaking to over 400,000 viewers. Key findings were: Sponsorship delivers impact across all key metrics. Compared to non-viewers of sponsorship, average percentage point uplifts are seen in awareness (+8%), consideration (+8%), brand perceptions (+7%), relevance (+5%) and trust (+6%). On average, over half of viewers will recall a sponsorship ident and almost a quarter will want to find out more about a brand having been exposed to a sponsorship. Frequency is a key virtue. Idents that have been seen more than 60 times see a +57% boost in prompted brand awareness, versus a campaign with an average frequency of under 60. Sponsorship particularly stands out among elusive young audiences: among all audience groups, 16-34s returned the highest recognition. Content alignment is key. By aligning a brand’s creative to a sponsorship, metrics can be amplified, and key attributes of a programme, can transmit onto the brand. Channel 4 gave some examples to back up its findings, such as Sensodyne’s partnership with Made In Chelsea. After seeing the sponsorship, 59% of respondents said they were more likely to consider Sensodyne, a +12pp uplift vs. norms (47%). Claimed purchase increased significantly with 21% of non-viewers saying they had bought Sensodyne in the past three months, compared with 33% of viewers.

GLOBAL agency group Havas has acquired UK-based digital-first agency Wilderness. The company says the deal will bring “deep social marketing expertise to Havas globally and enhance the existing social media services offered within Havas Village London, its PR agencies, and Havas Play.” At the same time, it will help “accelerate clients’ transition to become more customer-centric organisations”. Founded by Tom Jarvis in 2015, Wilderness rose to prominence working as an in-house partner to entertainment brands including Sony Pictures, 20th Century, and Universal Pictures where the firm built specialism in areas including branded content, shoppable experiences and always-on production. Subsequently, the firm diversified into verticals such as food and drink, FMCG, travel, fashion, and technology. Yannick Bolloré, chairman and global CEO, Havas, said: “Wilderness is a forward-thinking business that perfectly aligns with Havas’ unique positioning at the crossroads of entertainment and advertising, helping clients reach their customers in innovative and meaningful ways. We are excited to see how the addition of Wilderness will enhance complementary specialisms provided by Havas Play and others across Havas globally.”

Ranked Nº1: Campaign: Morning After Island by Ogilvy Tegucigalpa for Grupo Estratégico PAE. Agency: BETC Paris. Network: Ogilvy. Holding Company: WPP. Brand: Burger King. Advertiser: Anheuser-Busch InBev. Country: USA The creative use of digital technology and the dominant purpose of women’s rights are key to many campaigns’ creative success. THE WARC Creative 100, the ultimate independent global benchmark of the world’s most awarded campaigns and companies for creative excellence, is now released. Compiled by WARC Creative, the annual Creative 100 Ranking reflects the work that was awarded by the most important global and regional creative shows in 2023. The awards tracked are determined by a yearly global panel survey and in consultation with the WARC Rankings Advisory Board. Amy Rodgers, Head of Content, WARC Creative, said: The WARC Creative 100 are league tables of the best of the best campaigns and the companies behind and for them. They provide the ideal opportunity for the industry to reflect and be inspired by the great body of work produced and how creativity is a driver, not only of differentiation, but for change. “The creative use of digital technology is prevalent in this year’s Creative 100, used in ‘The First Digital Nation’ for Government Of Tuvalu, ‘McEnroe vs McEnroe’ for Michelob Ultra, and ‘Backup Ukraine’ for Polycam / UNESCO among others. And women’s rights were a dominant purpose for many of the campaigns at the top of the Ranking, such as the Nº1 ranked campaign ‘Morning After Island’ and ‘Knock Knock Knock’, ranked 4th, for the Korean National Police Agency”. Nº1 Campaign for creativity: Morning After Island by Ogilvy Tegucigalpa for Grupo Estratégico PAE THE MOST creatively celebrated campaign of 2023 was ‘Morning After Island’ for Honduran non-governmental organisation Grupo Estratégico PAE. Ogilvy Tegucigalpa created a physical activation and social media campaign to overturn a national ban on emergency contraception. Liz Taylor, global chief creative officer, Ogilvy, said: “Seeing ‘Morning After Island’ rank as the most awarded creative campaign of the year, is a testament to the resilience of our team in Honduras and proof that creativity has no bounds. Creativity can drive business, shape culture, and impact policy – in this case it helped millions of Honduran women change the law so they can legally take the morning-after pill. It is an idea that continues to inspire us all.” In second place is ‘Missing Matoaka’ by BBDO Toronto for Indigenous arts and culture magazine Muskrat that reveals the true story of Pocahontas. In third, ‘Where to Settle’ by McCann Warsaw for Mastercard, launched a digital platform to help Ukrainians find places of refuge outside big cities. Nº1 Agency for creativity: BETC Paris After gradually climbing the Creative agencies ranking since 2019, BETC Paris have secured the top place for the first time. With three campaigns in the top 100, for Women in Games, Duolingo and Canal+, the Havas Creative Group agency accrued a winning margin of more than 100 points. Stéphane Xiberras, president & chief creative officer, BETC Paris, said: “Being number one on The WARC Creative 100 is an incredible feat not to be taken for granted. Let’s take the time to reflect on that accomplishment and thank all our collaborators, clients, and partners that helped us make it happen. It’s a testament to the creative excellence that we’ve kept year after year.” Independent agency Rethink Toronto has risen to second place, up from 17th last year, with three campaigns ranked in the top 100 - two for Heinz and one for Penguin Random House. We Believers New York, takes third place, up from 8th in 2023 with two campaigns highly ranked for Corona. Nº1 Network for creativity: Ogilvy Ogilvy was the most awarded network for the fourth year in a row, with 37 offices contributing to its total and 9 in the top 50, including five DAVID offices. The network was also responsible for 12 of the top 100 campaigns this year. Liz Taylor, global chief creative officer, Ogilvy, said: “Ranking as the most creative network on the Creative 100 for the fourth year reflects our deep belief that creativity is the ultimate differentiator and force multiplier. It’s an outcome only earned because of the hard work, brilliance, and fearlessness of everyone at Ogilvy and our brave clients around the world. We are filled with gratitude and pride for the impact we have been able to create together this year.” DDB Worldwide retained its 2nd position with 6 agencies in the top 50 and 7 campaigns in the top 100. Having rebranded from VMLY&R and merged with Wunderman Thompson, newly created VML enters the ranking in 3rd place. Nº1 Brand for creativity: Burger King For the sixth year in a row, Burger King tops the brand ranking for creativity. Despite only having one campaign in the top 100 (Burger Glitch), the quick-service restaurant had 26 awarded campaigns in the full data set. Sabrina Ferretti, marketing vp, burger king international and Pat O’Toole, chief marketing officer burger king US & Canada, said: “We’re incredibly humbled to be named the most creative brand in the world by WARC again this year – wow! This recognition is driven by unforgettable creativity always rooted in consumer and cultural tensions that deliver business results and continued brand strength. This top spot for the past six years is a testament to the work of our passionate Franchisees, creative agencies and internal teams, all of whom make up our global Burger King family.” Corona, is in second place with 11 campaigns in the full data, and McDonald’s, which last ranked in 2022 is in third, with 25 campaigns across the full listing. The WARC CREATIVE 100 Rankings for 2024 can be seen HERE

After leading its first Jury, Cindy Gallop returns as the Glass: The Lion for Change Jury President for its 10th edition, while previous Lion of St. Mark honouree, Prasoon Pandey, is named as the Film Craft Lions President The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity has announced the names of the global experts confirmed to lead the 2024 Juries. Convening in Cannes in June, the Jury Presidents will help benchmark excellence across the world's very best creative and effective work. Among the Jury Presidents, Tor Myhren will serve as the Film Lions Jury President – the first time Apple has been represented. GUT's Anselmo Ramos is confirmed as the Brand Experience & Activation Lions President after a series of historic wins in 2023, and Debbi Vandeven has been announced as Jury President of the Dan Wieden Titanium Lions, representing the largest creative agency network in the world, VML. Additionally, after leading its first Jury, Cindy Gallop returns as the Glass: The Lion for Change Jury President for its 10th edition, while previous Lion of St. Mark honouree, Prasoon Pandey, is named as the Film Craft Lions President. Commenting on the Jury Presidents, Lions CEO Simon Cook said: "This is an exceptional line-up of talent from across the world, and we can't wait to see the work that rises to the top in June." See the full list of 2024 here

SERIAL Cannes Lions award winner John Lewis has revealed plans to create a new content production agency in partnership with technology-powered marketing company Inspired Thinking Group (ITG). Under the new alliance, John Lewis and ITG will combine to produce customer-facing marketing content. John Lewis said the new team will use ITG’s proprietary marketing technology to manage and produce a full range of content rapidly. “This partnership will radically transform what we do, using market leading technology to produce fantastic quality content, at speed and scale,” said Charlotte Lock, customer director for John Lewis Partnership. “Ultimately, it’s about creating even closer relationships with our customers, through more relevant, engaging, high-quality content.” Significantly, Lock indicated that the new alliance with ITG would not impact the work of its lead creative agency Saatchi & Saatchi. Instead, the move is about using market-leading technology to produce fantastic quality content at speed and scale. John Lewis is not alone in going down the in-house agency route. According to a recent survey conducted by WFA and The Observatory International, 66% of brands now have in-house agencies, with a further 21% actively considering one. Some 70% already have in-house strategic capabilities, according to the WFA, with many aiming to migrate tasks from external agencies over the next three years. While cost efficiencies remain the strongest motivation behind the growth of the in-house function (83%), other factors such as more agile processes (76%), better integration (59%) and increased brand knowledge (59%) are driving adoption. ITG has 1300 employees working across several markets worldwide. Its website references partners including KFC, Puma, Heineken, Costa, and M&S.

FMCG giant Nestlé’s full year results show that the company increased its marketing spend by 0.8% in 2023. Despite headline sales falling 1.5% to $105bn, the company still managed to achieve organic growth of 7.2%. Looking ahead to 2024, the Switzerland-based company is predicting organic sales growth around 4% and a moderate increase in its underlying trading operating profit margin. Nestlé CEO, Mark Schneider, said the company had performed well in the face of the cost of living crisis: "Unprecedented inflation over the last two years has increased pressure on many consumers and impacted demand for food and beverage products. In this challenging context, we delivered strong organic growth and solid margin improvement with increased marketing and other growth investments.” Going forward, Schneider said: “We are prioritising volume- and mix-led growth with increased brand support, as we enhance value for consumers through active innovation and renovation, premiumisation, affordability and more nutritious options. We will continue to focus capital allocation on our fast-growing billionaire brands, which enables us to deliver dependable growth while enhancing brand loyalty.” Marketing and administration expenses as a percentage of sales were 18.9% in 2023. Within this, advertising and marketing expenses were 7.7% of sales (circa $8bn).

AT THE start of the 2023 Cannes Lions session Unlocking Everybody’s Innate Creative Potential: The New Era of Collaboration, featuring singer-songwriter and entrepreneur will.i.am, moderator Jonathan Mildenhall dug out a 2010 video showing the Black Eyed Peas legend trying to persuade fellow band member Fergie that the future of music would be defined by AI. Fergie, like many in the Cannes Lions community, was sceptical. But 13 years on will.i.am is as evangelical as ever. In his words, the potential of AI is “freaking awesome. It’s already changing music and it’s going to change law, finance, education, retail, transport, white-collar jobs, blue-collar jobs, everything.” He is under no illusions that some jobs will be lost, but is convinced “it will lead to the emergence of new jobs and new industries”. He also expects it to be a democratising force that will benefit “underserved communities. It’s a tool that will liberate creativity in places like Soweto, Nigeria, Brazil and the LA projects where I grew up.” As an advocate for technology’s positive capabilities, will.i.am has put his money where his mouth is — launching a new tech platform for creatives called FYI. “People who look like me don’t usually get to launch AI-powered platforms. But we’re entering a new era where entertainers can inspire industries. I salute the likes of Rihanna, Jay-Z and Dr Dre who led the way. It was such a pleasure to be in at the start with Dr Dre and Beats — eventually sold to Apple.” FYI, which has backing from IBM, is designed for artists as a way for them to centralise all of their data in one place — stored safely through the use of encryption. “It came to me during the pandemic when I realised that creators were using about six different platforms for all of their IP, conversations and so on. FYI simplifies that.” Rather than job losses, will.i.am’s biggest fear around AI is lack of regulation. “You need a permit to drive a car, but not to run an AI platform. You don’t need a moral compass at all. That has to change. The thing we really have to fight for is control of our essence and likeness. Everyone is at jeopardy if we don’t own our stuff.”

LOUIS Theroux has been telling stories for 30 years, but his fly-on-the-wall narratives of everyday life have always maintained an awkward, self-deprecating style. The approach has endeared the documentary presenter to an ever-growing cadre of fans around the world. At home, English actor Judi Dench told Theroux in a recent interview that he was a “national treasure”. Reviewing a unique career built on the power of an authentic voice, the quirky, bespectacled Englishman joined BBC News’ Katty Kay at the Palais II in Cannes early in the Cannes Lions week. He described how he got his start in the US on Michael Moore’s TV Nation in the mid 1990s as a 23-year-old graduate. His “shambolic” nature and “level of incompetence” appealed to the future Oscar-winning documentary-maker. “My curiosity carried me through,” Theroux said of his interviews with fundamentalist policemen and Avon ladies trying to sell cosmetics in the Amazon. Theroux’s blundering, everyman correspondent was established in the popular imagination when he presented the first series of Weird Weekends on the BBC from 1998 to 2000. From neo-Nazis to porn stars, black nationalists and conspiracy theorists, he was able to embed himself in these fringe subcultures because people “trusted me”, he said. This authenticity was coupled with an innate shyness. “I could not do pieces to camera” because it felt “very artificial”, Theroux said. For the documentary presenter, stories need to have an organic flow if audiences are going to relate. This included interviewing male porn actors in the nude in an attempt to make them feel more relaxed. But he has also moved on from documenting “weirdness” because “it has become mainstream”. He referred to the former subjects like nationalist militias in the US that have since been legitimised by the likes of former president, Donald Trump. “I want to tell stories that keep me interested,” he said of more recent work, including spending two weeks with prisoners in San Quentin. He has also filmed a series of interviews with celebrities from Stormzy to Dame Judi Dench. As ever, Theroux has tried to approach these subjects as “normal people.” “I love anything that levels the playing field,” he said.

MIKE White, the multihyphenate writer, actor, producer director, reality-show contestant and creator of HBO’s hit TV comedy drama White Lotus, knows what it’s like to be invited to the party. As a minister’s son who grew up on the fringes of affluent Pasadena, he also knows what it’s like not to be invited, to be the person “behind the curtain looking out” at the beautiful, cool people sitting around the swimming pool. “As a creative person, I draw on that,” he told the enraptured audience at yesterday’s Ogilvy seminar, When Creativity Drives Culture. “When I started writing White Lotus, I thought, oh good, I’ll just make it about attractive people by the swimming pool and throw in a dead body. You realise that audiences show up for sex and violence, so I sprinkled a little of that in there. But ultimately, it’s about ideas I want to talk about and characters that excite me.” White Lotus, which follows the exploits of the guests and employees of a fictional resort chain, was commissioned by HBO at the start of the pandemic and released in July 2021 — an absurdly short lead time for such an ambitious show. “But HBO needed content quickly and they knew I was a fast writer,” White told Liz Taylor, Ogilvy’s chief creative officer and self-confessed White Lotus fangirl. “But because it was such a race and so rushed, there was no oversight, which was great. TV people are always trying to protect me from myself because I’m a weirdo, but HBO left me alone.” White talked hilariously but movingly about his professional burnout, which prompted him to move to Hawaii and rewrite the script to his own life. “I was in my thirties doing a show for Fox called Cracking Up, which was ironic because I basically had a nervous breakdown. I was trying to do this cool show with these cool people but Fox hated what I was doing. I started having panic attacks and crying but not knowing why, so I went to a shrink, who asked if I ever had suicide ideation. I said I sometimes thought about throwing myself under a bus — and the next thing I know I’m in a mental hospital... But they say the thing you’re most afraid of its exactly what you need. And that changed the whole way I live my life.” When asked by Taylor if he had any advice for an audience of creatives, he said: “Protect yourself from burnout. Whatever keeps you excited, go towards that, even if it seems like a risky proposition. If you’re alive and stimulated by what you do, it will translate into your work.” Meanwhile, Taylor wanted to know if there was anything White still wanted to achieve. “Part of me thinks I’d like to play tennis in the morning and eat healthy food,” he replied. “The other part of me just wants to sneak out the back door…”

“I’M CONNECTING with you right now and you’re connecting with me, so I love you even if I don’t know you.” With those words, Jon Batiste launched into a mini-set at yesterday’s Coca-Cola Company, WPP Open X and VMLY&R seminar on The Terrace Stage, ending with a powerful, drilled-down rendition of his new song for Coke Studio, Be Who You Are. And there was no doubt that the audience — some Gen Z, some just wishing they were — were connecting right back with the Academy and Grammy Award-winning musician, whose eighth studio album, We Are, was released to overwhelming critical acclaim in March 2021. The session — Hear and Be Heard: How to Serenade Gen Z — explored how Coke Studio is harnessing the power of music to connect with a generation of young consumers famous for their fleeting attention span and aversion to traditional advertising. Leading the way is Coke Studio, an innovative music platform that brings together musicians from around the world in what Joshua Burke, global head of music for The Coca-Cola Company, called “creative collisions”. “That means bringing together two or more artists from across genres, cultures, countries, communities and generations to create something new and special that bridges divides,” he said. Referencing Coca-Cola’s global brand platform, Burke added: “This is how we achieve ‘Real Magic’ and connect with our Gen Z audiences in meaningful and authentic ways.” Speaking at the panel debate after his performance, moderated by Kyla Jacobs, WPP Open X’s global category lead for Coca-Cola, Batiste said the creative economy is becoming a lot more democratic. “And I think that’s a beautiful thing,” he added. “It’s just a matter of how you siphon through all the incredible energy and people to find the right place for you to speak your message. I really believe every artist has a message — and there are people out there who that message is meant to reach.” Rafael Pitanguy, deputy global chief creative officer at VMLY&R, leads the creative for key client, The Coca-Cola Company. “It’s all about the music — that’s obvious and fundamental,” he said. “There’s nothing bigger than the music and making sure it gets to the people and that they’re touched by the song.” This resonated with Burke: “The North Star of the Coke Studio programme is that, if the music isn’t good, none of this stuff actually matters.”