The Lions are keeping up with the times.
As it turns 70, the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, casts a brighter spotlight on diversity, equity and inclusion — all of which are needed to stay competitive and successful in a fast-changing world.
The event, unfolding in the South of France on June 19-23, began in the 1950s as a showcase for television and cinema advertising. Today it embraces the wide range of industries and platforms where marketing, branding, advertising and creative messaging live, from small screens to cinemas, billboards to streamers.
The fest has always illuminated how imaginative storytelling and compelling narratives can drive industry and commerce. And now, in a world both more connected and diverse than ever, inclusivity is a key part of the message.
Oscar-winning filmmaker and actor Spike Lee (above, left), who also runs advertising agency Spike DBB, will receive the festival’s Creative Maker of the Year award, an honor introduced this year. Lee, well-known for his Nike Air Jordan TV commercials of the late 1980s, which he shot “as a younger cat when I got into advertising,” says he will remind the Cannes Lions of something he said in 1997: “We keep having these obstacles, these hurdles, we have to face and we have to keep knocking them down.”
Attendees celebrate their wins at last year’s Cannes Lions awards ceremony.
Getty Images for Cannes Lions
The Lions are also presenting the Entertainment Person of the Year Award to actor, producer and comedian Kevin Hart (above, right), founder of media company Hartbeat. The honor recognizes Hart’s role in creating entertainment that drives successful marketing and communications.
Many attendees will attend the Variety Studio at Cannes Lions Presented by Canva, an event that will feature musician and entrepreneur will.i.am, NBCUniversal advertising and partnerships chairman Mark Marshall, Amazon head of global marketing Claudine Cheever, UTA chairman Jeremy Zimmer, top Disney execs Rita Ferro and Shannon Ryan and TikTok global business head Sofia Hernandez.
Also at the studio: marketing captains from Unilever, Mastercard, McDonald’s and Ulta Beauty. Participating Canva execs include global head of marketing and strategic partnerships Natalie Schwartz, global head of sales Jen Howard and head of global strategic partnerships Jonathan Harley.
Additional Lions speakers include Michelle Gass, president, Levi Strauss & Co., who will share the new global creative platform “The Greatest Story Ever Worn”; Tiffany Rolfe, global chief creative officer, R/GA, speaking on building digital worlds; and Adam & Eve DDB’s group head of effectiveness Les Binet, who will demo how to develop effective relationships with diverse audiences.
Flying in from the world of film and sport: Michael Johnson, four-time Olympic gold medalist, who will show how brands can engage with the Olympic movement; and actress, playwright and U.N. Women goodwill ambassador Danai Gurira on how brands can turn DE&I into action.
Lions has partnered with Cephas Williams, founder of the Black British Network, on Black Out 2023, an initiative to secure attendance for up to 50 people from the Black community.
As the global economy copes with the fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine, the world is wondering whether we face recession or recovery. “The pressing issues this year are macro,” says Lions CEO Simon Cook, noting that “global uncertainty has put downward pressure on budgets. Creatives and marketers are having to work hard to prove the value of creativity.”
