Media Lions: Cannes 2022 Decoded

AMV BBDO's 'Hope Reef' work for Mars Petcare brand Sheba triumphed in the Media Lions category, winning the agency its second Grand Prix for the work after it topped the Industry Craft Lions earlier in the week.

The campaign saw the creation of a living reef in Indonesia and was designed to highlight the fragility of the world's tropical reefs.

Spelling out the word "Hope", the reef is viewable on Google Maps and Google Earth. It was created in a once-barren site that had been destroyed by fishermen.

VMLY&R London won a Gold Lion in the category with its 'Ford Very Gay Raptor' entry for the Ford Raptor, which called out homophobic trolling on social media with a Ranger Raptor vehicle dressed in a Pride rainbow flag design.

London-based Forever Beta landed a Silver Lion for the 'I'm Here' Big Issue entry, and BBH London a Bronze for its 'Together This Ramadan' work for Tesco.

Creative Salon spoke to global CEO of Havas Media Group and juror for this year's Media Lions to gain a little intel into the decisions behind this year's winners.

What were the key trends/reflections in the Media Lions category?

Brands leaning in to emerging technologies like NFTs and the metaverse. We’re seeing a lot of “firsts” in this space and some interesting media experience innovations within those environments.

Re-emergence of powerful 360 experiences. I saw many incredible examples of multiple touchpoint innovations happening within campaigns that created meaningful, end-to-end experiences for people and results for brands. It’s rewarding to see these thoughtful campaigns being more widely deployed as opposed to single focus media plans we’ve seen in recent years.

How brands are tackling sustainability is as expansive as ever. The sustainability-focused work has been vast and covered environmental impact, gender equality, social justice, inclusivity in all its forms, community impact and more – with brands, agencies and partners all driving towards making a positive change in our world.

What advice would you give to marketers wanting to win a Media Lion next year?

As a juror, I am ultimately looking for an incredible media experience that sits at the core of the campaign. How did this experience invent something new? Was there a unique human insight that sat behind it? Was it brave? How did it create a meaningful experience for people? My advice for marketers looking to win next year would be to focus on campaigns that meld memorable media experiences and results that are transformative to a brand’s business.

What was your favourite work in this category?

Adidas’ Liquid Billboard, which has won big across numerous categories this year, is a standout. I found the cultural insight that sits at the core of the campaign – that women don’t feel comfortable swimming in public in the Middle East – quite profound, with Adidas solving for this tension with its inclusive women’s swimwear line. It celebrated and empowered women in a meaningful way and flawlessly brought together in real life experiences, out-of-home innovation, digital and PR execution.

Another case that has really stayed with me is “Backup Ukraine” from Polycam x Unesco. At the onset of the Russian invasion, the collective urged Ukrainians to document buildings, monuments and works of art by scanning them with their phones. The scans were then preserved as full 3D models, with virtual blueprints saved safely in the cloud. It was a brilliant use of mobile and tech, and I can’t think of anything more meaningful than preserving heritage and culture for future generations.