The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity came roaring back to the real world this year after two years of silence on the French Riviera. Many wondered how the festival would be changed after a period defined by a world-altering pandemic and growing pressure on brands to use their powers and resources for social good.
Sure enough, many of the high-profile Grand Prix winners in this year’s festival reflected an urgency by marketers to address cultural tensions, inequality, climate change and more. Others reveled in longform storytelling that proved attention spans aren’t always as short as popular opinion would have us believe.
While this year’s gallery of top winners is light on practical, sales-driven campaigns, it’s clear that what the festival’s juries wanted to honor at the highest level was a sense of ambition to create captivating narratives and right wrongs rather than just turn a profit.
Here’s a look at all 27 campaigns that took home Grand Prix honors at this year’s Cannes Lions:
Vice Media | ‘The Unfiltered History Tour’
Agency: Dentsu Creative Bengaluru
Grand Prix winner in:
Brand Experience and Activation Lions
Social & Influencer Lions
WeCapital | ‘Data Tienda’
Agency: DDB Mexico
Grand Prix winner in:
Decathlon | ‘The Breakaway: The First E-cycling Team for Prisoners’
Agency: BBDO Belgium
Grand Prix winner in:
Creative Strategy Lions
PR Lions
Mars Petcare / Sheba | ‘Hope Reef’
Agency: AMV BBDO London
Grand Prix in:
Industry Craft Lions
Media Lions
Sherwin-Williams | ‘Speaking in Color’
Agency: Wunderman Thompson Minneapolis
Grand Prix winner in:
Creative B2B Lions
Dole Sunshine + Ananas Anam | ‘Piñatex’
Agency: L&C New York
Grand Prix winner in:
Creative Business Transformation Lions
Wingstop | ‘Thighstop’
Agency: Leo Burnett Chicago
Grand Prix winner in:
Creative Ecommerce Lions
Michelob Ultra | ‘Contract for Change’
Agencies: FCB Chicago and FCB New York
Grand Prix winner in:
Creative Effectiveness Lions (based on business results from campaigns in previous years)
Penguin Books | Portuguese (Re)constitution
Agency: FCB Lisbon
Grand Prix winner in:
Design Lions
Polycam x Unesco | Backup Ukraine
Agency: Virtue Worldwide New York
Grand Prix winner in:
Digital Craft Lions
Coinbase | ‘Less Talk, More Bitcoin’
Agency: Accenture Song New York
Grand Prix winner in:
Direct Lions
Swedish Food Federation | ‘Eat a Swede’
Agency: McCann Stockholm
Grand Prix in:
Entertainment Lions
Residente | ‘This Is Not America’
Production: Doomsday Entertainment
Grand Prix in:
Entertainment for Music Lions
Nike | ‘NikeSync’
Agency: R/GA London
Grand Prix in:
Entertainment Lions for Sport
Penny | ‘The Wish’
Agency: Serviceplan Germany
Grand Prix in:
Film Craft Lions
Channel 4 | ‘Super. Human.’
Agency: 4Creative London
Grand Prix in:
Film Lions
Apple | ‘Escape From the Office’
Production: Smuggler
Grand Prix in:
Film Lions
Humane Society | ‘Save Ralph’
Agency: Vespa Pictures
Grand Prix in:
Grand Prix for Good
Hip Hop Public Health | ‘Lil Sugar—Master of Disguise’
Agency: Area 23
Grand Prix in:
Maxx Flash | ‘The Killer Pack’
Agency: VMLY&R Mumbai
Grand prix in:
Health & Wellness Lions
Suncorp Group | ‘One House to Save Many’
Agency: Leo Burnett Sydney
Grand Prix in:
Innovation Lions
Google | ‘Real Tone’
Agencies: T Brand Studio, Wieden+Kennedy Portland and Gut Miami
Grand Prix in:
Mobile Lions
Adidas | ‘Liquid Billboard’
Agency: Havas Middle East
Grand Prix in:
Outdoor Lions
Dell Technologies + Intel | ‘I Will Always Be Me’
Agency: VMLY&R New York
Grand Prix in:
Pharma Lions
An-Nahar Newspaper | ‘The Elections Edition’
Agency: Impact BBDO Dubai
Grand Prix in:
Print & Publishing Lions
P&G Whisper | ‘This Missing Chapter’
Agency: Leo Burnett Mumbai
Grand Prix in:
Sustainable Development Goals Lions
Kyan Prince Foundation + EA Sports | ‘Long Live the Prince’
Agency: Engine London
Grand Prix in:
Titanium Lions
