The 12 Best Outdoor Ad Campaigns of the Year

Browse the Cannes Lions' gold and Grand Prix winners for 2018

June 28, 2018

Spicy fried chicken replaces the flames in KFC Hong Kong's outdoor and print campaign from Ogilvy.

June 28, 2018

In advertising’s golden age, “outdoor” was a category essentially synonymous with billboards. And while there are certainly still a few creative boards on display in this year’s top winners at the Cannes Lions, most of the golds went to out-of-home ideas that push the edges of how marketers can engage passersby.

Take, for example, the massive dead whale created by Greenpeace Philippines and agency Dentsu Jayme Syfu. What looks at first to be a colossal carcass on the beach is, on closer inspection, a sculpture made from the types of plastic trash that are killing the region’s majestic ocean life.

Then there’s HBO’s SXSWestworld, which brought eerily lifelike sci-fi interactions to modern-day Texas for a next-generation festival experience.

The two Grand Prix winners perhaps represented both sides of the equation, reflecting traditional outdoor minimalism and the blurred lines between out-of-home and activations.

Check out all the 2018 Cannes Lions gold and Grand Prix winners in Outdoor below:

Greenpeace Philippines, “Dead Whale”

Agencies: Dentsu Jayme Syfu Makati City, Etnikolor Makati, Dentsu X Makati, IProspect Makati, Grenroom Inc., Upprgrnd Makati, Hit Productions Makati City
Country: The Philippines

Louvre Abu Dhabi, “Highway Gallery”

Agencies: TBWA\RAAD Dubai, Hertz Radio Manila, Rama International Limited Dubai, Abu Dhabi Media Company
Country: United Arab Emirates

HBO, “HBO’s SXSWestworld”

Agencies: Giant Spoon New York, Mycotoo California, Glass Eye London
Country: USA

Burger King, “Scary Clown Night”

Agencies: LOLA MullenLowe Madrid, F16 Madrid, Only 925 Madrid, Weber Shandwick London, Alison Brod Marketing and Communications New York
Country: Spain