Y&R In Cannes 2008

Congratulations to all...

FILM

        Melbourne, Cadbury "Burst"
        Toronto, Ford "Human Car"
        Singapore, Sony "Threads"
        Singapore, Astro Mobile "Street"
        Paris, Decathlon "Love at First Sight"
        Tokyo, Prime Network "Station"
        Zurich, Sport Plausch Wider "Blah-Blah"
        London, BBC-2  "White"
        London, BBC iPlayer  "Penguins"         London, BBC-4 "Medieval Mind Trip"
        Buenos Aires, MTV "Toupee"
        Tel Aviv, Direct Insurances "Woodstock"
        New York, MTV "Billiard"
        New York, MTV "Falcon"
        New York, MTV  "Guacamole"
        Madrid, Spanish Army "Camouflage"
        Paris, Surfrider "Oceans Initatives"

Work Hard, Play Hard

Y&R EMEA has already 10 Lions and still counting. So, plenty of reason to celebrate, big time. No wonder the party last night at the Carlton Beach was absolutely great. I believe we out-partied the rest of the Cannes beaches easily. Best music, best girls (who came up with those gorgeous go-gos?) and best mixed crowd (was there any bigger office missing?). Compliments and thanks to all involved. I heard that some bored Publicis folks tried to come over at the shore and you could see the jealous non-invited watching from above with eyes wide open. It was sad that we had to stop at 2 am. There was enough energy around for another 2 hours. But maybe the bar got empty? Or they charge a heavy extra time after 2.  Yep. There were still some well known execs and finance guys around at that time...

Well we all knew where to go and so most stranded at the Martinez bar. Or more precisely in the zone 500 meters around it where at least the same amount of people was gathering. I am always shocked about the incredible noise such a bunch of drunken professionals is able to generate. I am saying this being half-deaf, because I spent 2 hours dancing right in front of the heavy speakers at the Carlton beach. By the way: Mr. Himpe, can I bill the consultations of my ear doctor and this mornings liver transplantation to the company? Just saw Sir Martin in the Palais in a very good mood. So come on, let's give it a try.

Christian Daul

"You Have A Duty to Provoke.""

Rupert Murdoch Interviewed by Hamish McLennan.

"I am a change catalyst. You can’t be an outsider and have 30 years of ongoing success without leaving a certain number of marks everywhere".   All of Murdoch is abridged in this phrase.

In a relaxed talk that took place in the Debussy Auditorium, Hamish McLennan led Rupert Murdoch -Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of News Corporation- through all fields, from the political, digital and personal ones, to management and the handling of his companies, which form the third largest media conglomerate in the planet, daily reaching over one billion people through movies, newspapers, TV channels, cable networks, magazines, books, among many other channels.

The interview started with a video which, for introduction purposes, gave a review of NewsCorp’s greatest milestones, from its most recent acquisition, The Wall Street Journal, to the movies Titanic and Star Wars, to MySpace, Fox, and many other companies from Australia to London, from NY to China, that this Australian “Media Baron” has been acquiring non stop. Answering what he wanted to answer, and avoiding, with the subtlety of the big ones, whatever he did not want to respond to, when Hamish asked him about Obama, Murdoch did not show any bias, maybe because he seems to know they were talking about the next president of the United States.

Rupert Murdoch is 76 years old, has been monitoring the changes in the communications market for over 50 years, and appears undeterred by the speed of the changes the digital world has been bringing about. He still buys the newspaper because he firmly believes in complementation; he says his newspapers are the living proof that one medium does not kill another one. Adopting new forms, listening to the consumer, and adapting to change. “Always taking chances, because the fear of not running risks only paralyzes us and hinders us from moving on. Making mistakes, failing, is better than fearing failure”, added Peter Chernin, Murdoch’s right hand and number two, who also participated in the interview.

Murdoch has an important record interpreting the desires of consumers, giving them a voice in new and unexpected ways; but fortunately, and above all, for those of us who believe in the written word -the well written word- he still bets on ink and paper, the way he knows how to do it, in style.

Andrea Mendelevich

Lions, Lions and More Lions

Congratulations to last night's winners, as well as everyone who has received an award this week.

Fantastic!

Promo
Tel Aviv, Gold - MOAR "Internet Shutdown"

Media
Tel Aviv, Silver - MOAR "Internet Shutdown"
Zurich, Silver - LEICA "Optical Zoom"
Mexico, Bronze - Wyeth Robaxisol "Back"
Tel Aviv, Bronze - MOAR "Internet Shutdown" (dif cat.)

Outdoor
Zurich, Silver - LEICA "Bricks, Ivy, Stakes,  Iron Fence, Tiles"
Paris, Bronze - Radio Nova "Funk, Cuba, Blues, James"

Radio
Malaysia, Silver - Colgate "Brushing"
Malaysia, Bronze - UHU Glue "Stuck Tune"
Chicago, Bronze - Miller "Cold Filtered Announcer"
Frankfurt, Bronze - Wuesthof "little Radish"

Press
Paris, Silver - Radio Nova "India, Funk, Jaz, Rap, Cuban, Folk, James, Blues"
Sao Paulo, Silver - Santa Casa "waiting List"
Tel Aviv, Bronze - Orange "Text Messaging"
Sao Paulo, Bronze - Tam Airlines "King Kong"
Chicago, Bronze - Companions for Seniors "Cards, Piano, Shoe"

Cyber
Tel Aviv, Silver - MOAR "Internet Shutdown"

Design
Paris, Bronze - Surfrider Foundation "Surfrider Calendar"

"Congratulations to the Winners"

PROMO: Tel Aviv, MAOR "Missing Soldiers Internet Shutdown" - GOLD

MEDIA: Mexico, Robax "Back" - BRONZE

Radio, Press, OOH, Media, Direct, Promo, Cyber and Design SHORTLIST

Congratulations to all...

RADIO
Chicago, Miller "Colder Filtered Announcer"
Chigago, National Parks "Search & Rescue"
Malaysia, UHU Glue "Stuck Tune"
Malaysia, Colgate "Brushing"
Germany "Wuesthor Kitchen Knives "Little Radish"

PRESS
France, Radio Nova "Generic"
France, Radio Nova "India"
France, Radio Nova "Ska"
France, Radio Nova "Funk"
France, Radio Nova "Jazz"
France, Radio Nova "Rap"
France, Radio Nova "Cuba"
France, Radio Nova "Blues"
France, Radio Nova "James"
France, Surf Rider Foundation "Octopus"
France, Surf Rider Foundation "Lobster"
France, Surf Rider Foundation "Eel"
France, Surf Rider Foundation "Seahorse"
Chicago, Campanions for Seniors "Cards"
Chicago, Campanions for Seniors "Piano"
Chicago, Campanions for Seniors "Shoe"
Singapore, Yellow Box Studios "Character Voices"
Singapore, Yellow Box Studios "Sound Design"
Singapore, Fusion Cosmetics “Avril”
Singapore, Fusion Cosmetics “Bill”
Sao Paulo, Tam Airlines "King kong"
Sao Paulo, Tam Airlines "Titanic"
Thailand, Ton-Mai-Koo "Mountain Bike"
Thailand, Ton-Mai-Koo "Frisbee"
Tel Aviv, Orange "Text Messaging"
Malaysia, UHU Glue "Kidnap"
Santiago, Fundacion San Jose "Pregnant"

OOH
France, Radio Nova "Generic"
France, Radio Nova "India"
France, Radio Nova "Ska"
France, Radio Nova "Funk"
France, Radio Nova "Jazz"
France, Radio Nova "Rap"
France, Radio Nova "Cuba"
France, Radio Nova "Blues"
France, Radio Nova "James"
Malaysia, YSER Mkting "Photo Journalist Krueger"
Malaysia, YSER Mkting "Bull Run Pamplona"
Malaysia, YSER Mkting "Hunting Uluru Kata"
Malaysia, Colgate Soflan “Rugby”
Zurich, Leica Camera "Bricks"
Zurich, Leica Camera "Barrier"
Zurich, Leica Camera "Hedge"
Zurich, Leica Camera "Ivy"
Zurich, Leica Camera "Metal Sheet"
Zurich, Leica Camera "Stakes"
Zurich, Leica Camera "Iron Fence"
Zurich, Leica Camera "Tiles"
New Delhi, Xerox "George Bush”

PROMO
Germany, Skin Cancer Calendar
Tel Aviv, Internet Shut Down
Tel Aviv, Yellow Pages "MindReader"

MEDIA
Tel Aviv, MAOR Internet Shut Down
Tel Aviv, MAOR Internet Shut Down (dif cat.)
Tel Aviv, Yellow Pages "Chiropractors"
Tel Aviv, Yellow Pages "Yellow Pages"
Tel Aviv, Food Bank "Plates Guerilla"
Tel Aviv, Food Bank "Plates Guerilla" (dif cat.)
Tel Aviv, Yotvata "Vending Machines and Refridgerators"
Mexico City, Wyeth "Back"
Zurich, Sunrise TDC-Switz "Free Internet"
Zurich, Leica “Optical Zoom (dif cat.)
Zurich, Leica “Optical Zoom (dif cat.)
Santiago, Corporacion La Esperanza “Line”
London, BBC “Penguins”

DIRECT
Tel Aviv, Colgate "The Freshness Meter"
Tel Aviv, Shalmor Avnon Amichay "Miserable Children"
Malaysia, Minz "Celebrity Wedding Cards"

CYBER
Tel Aviv, Orange "Online Interactive Duet"
Tel Aviv, Ituran GPS "The First Interactive GPS"
Tel Aviv, MOAR "Internet Shut Down"
London, SAINT London "BBC White Season-Spectrum"

DESIGN
France, Surf Rider "Calendar Surfrider"
Mumbai, Getty Images "Frame"

No Problem with “Digital”, but TV is Still the Star

With a total of 28,284 pieces registered, 10% more than last year, 4626 participate in the Film category. Even though there are various seminars, lectures and workshops devoted to the topic of the day, The Digital Era, TV is still the star category. Because just as the invention of the movies did not kill books, and the VCR did not kill the movies, YouTube, Facebook, Digg, Twitter and whatever might come will not kill commercials. Because a good commercial still makes our blood flow.

The new technologies have arrived to stay, there’s no doubt about it, in spite of the reigning anarchy and the lack of knowledge that still exists around them. According to Eric Shmidt, Google's CEO, “Internet is the first thing that human kind has created and does not understand". To reinforce this concept, during yesterday’s awards Juan Pablo Jurado –Chairman of Wunderman Argentina and this year jury of Direct- told me, amused and surprised at the same time, that: “To vote, we received a Palm where we had to write our decisions, all cutting edge! But the last two days we ended up using the old and traditional “hand raising” system: the Palms had died, the technology did not work well."  And we are in Europe. I thought these things only happened in our Southern countries. Fortunately, besides modern technology, we still have our hands!

On the other hand, on Sunday I attended the GoViral seminar, presented by Jimmy Maymann, its CEO, who, apart from giving us his book "The Social Metropoli" as a present, which I scanned and recommend, basically reinforced the idea (and I say reinforced rather than introduced because nothing too new was said, he showed us some interesting cases such as the one of Lost, the TV series whose activation action achieved 18.5 million unique viewers just in the pilot episode) that in this common space of relationships and communication, the only way in which advertising can turn things to its advantage (and this is where the issue comes from) is by adding content to it.

So, even in the midst of this half-known explosion of the Digital, the Film winners will be those who take the most valued Lions. It still remains that way. In this category there are 21 jury members, only 2 of them are women (will this gender proportion make a difference in the results? – I don’t think so), only 3 are Latin American (Argentina, Brazil and Mexico), 10 are European, and there are also representatives from Australia, Canada, India, Japan, New Zealand, South Africa, Thailand and USA, who will be responsible for the tough task of judging over 4,600 commercials.

Joaquín Mollá, founder and creative director of La Comunidad (with whom I shared the flight from Paris to Nize) humbly told me that only from Argentina there are 186 pieces, that he saw them all again in the Buenos Aires – Paris flight, and that he can’t imagine how 21 people will be able to assess 4,600 commercials in less than a week.

Finally, I will borrow some of David Craig’s words, Film and Press Jury President this year, who asked the members of the jury to “judge with their heart and, if they feel envy, then it is a Bronze, if they feel jealous, then it’s a Silver, and if they feel humility, then, my friends, that's a Gold."  On Saturday we will know which are the works that make us feel "more humble" and, at the same time, those that make us quiver.

Andrea Mendelevich

Lots of Water: Rain and Tears of Joy

Extremely short blog, because of press conference, interviews, award ceremony and opening gala (its a thunderstorm and they are not prepared for this!). Waiters are running around to save the party or at least the buffet and the place is mainly wet. The most important news: We won a Bronze Lion at Cannes Lions Radio today. My team is extremely happy.

Other good news: I was able to help at Silver for our Zurich office (Leica) and Bronze for Paris (Radio Nova) in my Outoor Jury. Congrats to all! Well deserved, great work. This said I want to add my admiration and salutes to Israel which got the second Golden Lion today. After Promo, the Media jury was impressed, too. Gideon has in total 15 shortlists. I did see him today and he couldn't stop smiling. It's his year and I am proud of them. Gideon, my friend, go on hunting. I am sure there is more to come in this Cannes for you!

Christian Daul

Long Day, Short Blog

Today was the toughest and longest jury day. We walked in at 9 am and left at quarter past 8 pm. All Lions at one day at the biggest of all shortlists so far. Our HP iPac voting  system crashed a few times in the morning. So we decided to vote by hands openly. It was not intended by the festival but we felt in the end very good about it and had lively and partly funny discussions. Special credits go here to David from the US. In the end we also found our Grand Prix. Top secret of course. I am not allowed to tell anything before the press conference anyway.. . So I end this blog right now. Maybe it is also because Germany is playing at the EM now.

Christian Daul

Return of the Beep

I expected the day to run differently. After we arrived at the Festival building (like every day through the entree des artistes!) I had to notice that we still had to do our judging with the scanners. Yes there was some kind of shortlist now, but we had to see all the work (half again, half fresh) which made it in this round. And again we were supposed to judge whether this should just remain shortlist, or could be a potential winner or would be quite a clear winner. Heavy beeping, worse than ever, because now the folders were much thinner and they were circulating quickly around the room. After finishing this we had the chance to use our privilige vote (one wild card of a piece of work we are missing on the shortlist). Of course this could not come from your agency. I already had a depressing moment when I saw a ambient idea our agency had entered in the same category. Ours was not shortlisted. Heavy breathing. This work made it although I felt it was worse executed. Big lesson: It was a much stronger, world known brand. Ours was smaller. Big brand names beat local or unknown brands easily. Not matter how well the idea is done. I don't still know what embarassed me more. The fact that our idea was already in the competition or the bigger brand and the not so consistent execution.

My mood got a little better when I heard rumors at lunch that we had two shortlists in other categories this day. Tommorrow there will be finally the day of discussion. Because then its all about the lions. I was surprised that we did not use the rest of the afternoon to start. Because I believe this will be a very time consuming process tommorrow. Hmm. Maybe they have the experience that it has to be done on one day out of group dynamic reasons or so. Maybe you start questioning the results of the day before. Well we somehow did this already today, because most of us were missing some good work on the shortlist and were surprised about other pieces which made it. (What idiot did vote for that?) Of course that is totally subjective and normal. But hey, put big egos in one room and there the mess goes. I am shure we could argue the night through only about shortlist or not. And why. It is the first time I look at this ugly little scanner with a grateful and sympathetic feeling. I got a redish scan in the face back and of course a loud beep. But know what: it sounded peaceful. Almost like the waves outside.

Christian Daul