Chris Smith, Chief Strategy Officer at TMA, served on the Cannes Lions Promo & Activation jury last week.
What were your favorite entries at Cannes and why?
Sound of Honda, created by Dentsu Japan, did an amazing job of taking something obscure like Big Data, and making it emotionally relevant to consumers. F1 legend Ayrton Senna (killed in 1994) set a speed record in Suzuka, Japan in 1989. As luck would have it, the sound of his lap was recorded by Honda.
In order to showcase the benefit of using big data in improving the everyday car experience, Honda recreated this lap for a live audience via a digital installation at the very same location, using nothing but light and sound. Bringing Senna back to the track, even though only for 1:30, created the emotional experience that made people not only understand , but care about what Honda was doing. It gave me goosebumps.
Bald for Cartoons, created by Ogilvy Brasil, was another favorite. It showed that even with all the amazing technology at our disposal, sometimes the power of storytelling and a simple, human connection is what breaks through.
The simple insight was that kids with cancer don¹t want to feel different than other kids when they lose their hair during chemotherapy. The NGO got 70 of the most well-known cartoon characters in Brazil to appear bald in print and animation. It was a beautifully simple, yet extremely loud show of support. The act got tons of attention and soon celebrities and consumers were changing their profile pictures to cartoon images of themselves with bald heads. Both awareness and donations to the NGO were up.
