The Week That Wasn't

Crowded rooftops. All night parties. Cramped up beach houses. Noisy gatherings at ‘Gutter Bar’ with the party overflowing onto the Croisette. Raging Yacht parties. Jam-packed venues for live gigs…all these sights were missing from this year’s Cannes Lions

- Abhinay Bhasin

WHILE THE industry seemed to be in reset mode, owing to agencies appearing to be under siege by their archenemy, the consultants, it was a much more impact-focused and action-oriented week in the Riviera.

The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity is often considered a reflection of a moment in time in the global marketing, technology and media industries. Here are my takeaways from my ‘pilgrimage’ to the Mecca of creativity.

The post-#TimesUp & #MeToo Era

There was a marked number of women representation in the juries this year — up to 46 per cent compared with 43 per cent in 2017, moving the festival closer to its goal of reaching a 50:50 representation in the jury rooms.

There were a lot more women speakers taking to the Palais stage this year, speaking, not in sessions that simply spoke of lack of women in the top order — thankfully that has changed — but in sessions relating to successful women to learn from and admire. No doubt the ad-world, known to never be the one missing out on a cultural moment to co-opt, aligned itself on the side of the #MeToo and #TimesUp movement instantly, with several advertisers and agencies using the festival to announce a series of initiatives designed to push diversity, and in particular, give a thrust to gender equality.

Data’s marriage with creativity