June 2025

The Côte d’Azur’s annual parade of creative peacocks concluded last week with the 72nd Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, where 26,900 submissions from 96 countries vied for recognition in advertising’s most prestigious competition. Amidst the predictable pageantry and ritual networking, some genuinely transformative work emerged—most notably AXA’s “Three Words” campaign, which won the coveted Titanium Grand Prix by simply adding “and domestic violence” to French home insurance contracts, providing victims with emergency support services.

WPP claimed Creative Company of the Year for the second consecutive year with an impressive haul of 168 Lions, whilst DDB Worldwide reclaimed Network of the Year honours. The festival showcased artificial intelligence as both creative collaborator and industry disruptor, with campaigns increasingly focusing on authentic purpose over polished artifice. India delivered its strongest performance in years with 32 Lions total, led by FCB India’s “Lucky Yatra” campaign for Indian Railways.

Perhaps most tellingly, the rebranding of “Social & Influencer Lions” to “Social & Creator Lions” reflected the industry’s belated recognition that creators might actually be strategic partners rather than mere content amplifiers—progress, of sorts, in an industry perpetually caught between commercial imperatives and social responsibility.