Health & Wellness Lions: Cannes 2023 Decoded

Four UK agencies have snapped up Gold at this year's Cannes Lions in the Health and Wellness category.

AMV BBDO London with Bodyform won for its campaign '#PERIODSOMNIA'.

The campaign dives into the truth of periods at night. Challenging the Sleeping Beauty myth, the campaign showcases the chaotic realities of menstruation, from bloating to restless nights.

For The Cost of Beauty, Ogilvy London and Toronto were awarded Gold. Dove took action against rising youth mental health issues linked to social media. What they found was that 9 in 10 kids are exposed to toxic beauty content, affecting 1 in 2 kids. The film chronicles a girl's journey from childhood to her struggle with a life-threatening eating disorder fueled by social media influencers.

Another UK Gold went to adam&eve DDB for its work with ITVX and Calm on 'The Last Photo'.

'The Last Photo' raised awareness of a misunderstood aspect of suicidal behaviour and equipped the public to prevent suicide, even when signs were not readily visible. Fifty unbranded portraits depicting seemingly happy lives were installed on London's busy South Bank, drawing in passers-by.

And the final UK Gold went to Working with Cancer, a coalition between Publicis Groupe's global agencies from London, Chicago, Paris and New York.

Working with Cancer launched a global wake-up call to urge support for colleagues with cancer.

The campaign film, 'Monday,' directed by Elena Petitti Di Roreto and Martin de Thurah, highlighted the journey of cancer patients and the importance of workplace support.

And the Grand Prix went to the Special Agency for 'The Last Performance'.

Partners Life, a life insurance provider in New Zealand, collaborated with Special New Zealand for the disruptive 'The Last Performance' campaign.

Over six weeks, the ads aired after each episode of the Kiwi drama series The Brokenwood Mysteries, integrating the characters and plotlines into the commercials.

Further, Cannes Lions Golds went to Energy BBDO Chicago and Havas Paris. A total of 39 campaigns won in this category.

The Judges said....

Andrew Spurgeon, Chief Creative Officer Europe, Publicis Health & Executive Creative Director, Langland, and one of the judges observed:

"These are reflections vs trends.

• Simplicity at scale

The best work, as ever, was the simplest work. But what made that work even better was the ability to scale and reach broad audiences, both instantly and over time. Ann de Gaulle, which ran briefly, but had a sustained impact through its use of PR is a great example. And, of course, 'Working with Cancer' - a global initiative designed to encourage businesses to financially support those in their work force with a cancer diagnosis. This idea was considered so impactful that it was awarded The Grand Prix for Good.

• Storytelling gets real

There’s still a place for high production values and cinematic stories, but this year we saw a continuation of the trend for truly human storytelling through found-footage and first-person narratives. 'Dove’s Cost of Beauty' campaign addressing unattainable beauty standards is a wonderful example.

• Creative Risk

How can we do something that’s never been done before? 'The Last Performance' from Partner’s Life hijacked the end credits of a popular crime show to demonstrate in vivid detail why we all need to prepare for our own deaths. Not only was this an elegant creative idea, it also saved the client its media dollars by incorporating the advertising directly into the programming. A truly ground-breaking Grand Prix."