MANILA, JUNE 14, 2013 – Much is expected of the current crop of Filipino entries to this year’s 60th Cannes Lions festival following last year’s strong showing at the competition.
Cannes, France, the glitzy beachside venue of the festival is as inviting as always, but many are buckling down to work and are focused on the competition itself. Most of the 300-odd members of the juries, led by icons and legends such as David Droga, Tony Granger, Shelly Lazarus, Rei Inamoto and Dan Weiden, are beginning to comb through the entries.
The dash for metal is heightened by the fact that, as reported previously by adobo Magazine, a record 36,000 entries from 92 countries have been submitted to the show. Terry Savage, Executive Chairman of Cannes, is also expecting a record number of delegates this year.
The Cannes 2013 roster of speakers features hundreds of experts who are to discuss and showcase creativity in all its forms. The list includes actor, producer and musician Jack Black; Formula 1 driver Jenson Button; Global Director of Media Arts, TBWA\Worldwide and Chairman, TBWA\Media Arts Lab Lee Clow; top designer and social commentator Vivienne Westwood; comedian, writer, producer and late-night TV host Conan O’Brien; and a whole host of other creative experts and personalities.
Local participation
The Philippines submitted 268 entries to the Festival this year, down from 315 in 2012. This year, the only category no local entrant is contesting is Creative Effectiveness.
This year, two of the Philippines’ most prominent advertising experts take pride of place on different juries. BBDO Guerrero chairman and chief creative officer David Guerrero is on the Outdoor jury, while TBWA\SMP managing partner and chief creative officer Melvin Mangada takes part in judging for Radio.
Sixteen local delegates will be present at Cannes this year. The Philippine Daily Inquirer continues to be the country’s official representative to the Festival; vice president for advertising Pepito Olarte and corporate affairs manager Connie Kalagayan will be in attendance in Cannes.
A look back at the Cannes Lions 2012
This year’s Philippine entrants have their work cut out for them, given that in 2012, Ace Saatchi & Saatchi broke ground by becoming the first-ever Philippine entry to be shortlisted in the toughest category, Titanium & Integrated, for its campaign for Kraft Philippines, “Tiger Energy Playground”. The campaign also made it to the Direct, Media and Outdoor shortlists.
Fifteen other entries from the Philippines were also shortlisted across the Direct, Promo & Activations, Media, Press, Film, Outdoor and Radio categories.
The Philippine delegation to the 2012 Cannes Lions came home with a total of six medals, the largest metal haul since 2007.
Good old-fashioned hard work
Those rooting for the Philippines in 2013 should take heart, as some up-and-coming Filipino marketers and advertisers are making waves, earning their tickets to Cannes the time-honored way – through good hard work – which bodes very well for their future at this year’s Festival and afterwards as well.
< src="/global//UserFiles/Screen Shot 2013-06-15 at 12-23-48 AM-pn(2). " width="75" height="52" align="left" alt="" />Johnson & Johnson brand manager Roz Noriega (far left) and assistant brand manager Nikka Arcilla (left) saw off the competition and won the best creative brief award at 2013’s annual PANA Brand Camp. By doing so, the pair bagged a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to represent the country at the Cannes Young Marketers Competition.
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Two other Filipinos, EJ Galang (right) and Katrina Encanto (far right), who currently work for Lowe Bangkok, won the Ad Age fourth annual cover contest thanks to their striking entry “Portrait of a Creative in the Digital Age”. By besting more than 300 competing entries from around the world at this global tilt, they also earned a trip to Cannes. (Galang’s and Encanto’s ads for Unilever’s Knorr and Sunlight brands are contending for press and poster Lions this year.)
Additionally, Martin Flordeliza of Lowe Philippines also won a trip to Cannes this year after having been selected as one of the winners of Unilever’s Developing and Emerging Markets Young Creative Academy Scholarship. His prize comes as part of his scholarship to the Cannes Lions Young Creative Academy. Isabelle Agoncillo, an Integrated Marketing (IMC) Student of the University of Asia and the Pacific, is also joining the Cannes student academy this year.
