Thursday is here and it’s all about skill building, inclusive storytelling and how brands can win with gamers.
In this edition:
- Celebrating the Young Lions
- On the ground with Karen Howe
- Canada loves gold
- When women tell stories
- It’s not job-hopping, it’s skill-building
- The thrill of the game
Toasting the next generation of talent
The Young Lions Competition is one of the best ways to celebrate your creativity on a global stage. The Globe and Mail has been proud to host the Young Lions Print, Digital and Film competitions since 2007, Media since 2008 and Marketers since 2012.
“The support of Cannes Young Lions is a chance for The Globe and Mail to collectively profile our next generation of talent and give them a once-in-a life time experience that will be hugely rewarding, and could change their career forever,” says Andrew Saunders, chief revenue officer for The Globe and Mail.
See the winning work here. https://www.canneslions.com/enter/young-lions-competitions
On the ground with Karen Howe
Score one for advertising: The historical backbone of Netflix, according to co-CEO/chief content officer Ted Sarandos, isn’t a global pandemic. It’s the non-linear programming and lack of advertising – basically the anti-TV model. Subscription-based services are now facing a budgetary backlash. Thus Netflix decided to offer an ad-inclusive model. It returns our industry to its roots of helping to finance entertainment for the masses. I call this an Ad Victory. Fun fact: Squid Games is Netflix’s biggest show ever.
I boldly went: Let’s talk diversity, shall we? Sir Patrick Stewart took to the stage today for what was billed as a discussion about long-term fandom but ended up being a deeper conversation about inclusion. The Star Trek practically invented DEI. The franchise has a long history of welcoming all genders, races, sexual orientations, and species. Ahead of its time, yet again.
Greenpeace joins the Festival: “There are no awards on a dead planet,” Greenpeace says. This week has seen protests against the complicity of ad agencies working for the fossil fuel industry. WPP seems to be a specific target. The climax today included GP’s “This is fine” dog mascot hoisting up a protest banner on the Palais façade from an enormous crane.
-Karen Howe is the creative director and founder of The Township Group.
Canada loves Gold
Toronto-based Performance Art claims Gold Lion in Creative Data category. The recognition comes for the agency’s work on Black & Abroad’s “Black Elevation Map,” a travel planning platform that takes cultural data, including Black population data, historical markers, Black-owned businesses, and social media activity, and visualizes it as points of interest on a dynamic, searchable elevation map of the United States. The greater the density of data, the higher the elevation. Keep reading here.
Changing the culture of inclusive storytelling
Ukonwa Ojo and Regina Hall discuss what happens when women tell stories. More here.
It’s not job-hopping, it’s skill-building
Bozoma Saint John on why the ad industry is in trouble and why job-hopping isn’t as bad as you think. Full story here.
Getting in the game at Cannes
Sonia Carreno reflects on a talk by leaders from Activision Blizzard on where opportunities lie for brands. Keep reading.
