Cannes Lions

I attended the opening night of the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity yesterday at the Winnipeg Art Gallery and as always, I laughed, I cried, and I asked myself “What the eff did I just watch?”

The biggest WTF of the night was Lady Gaga’s perfume ad: black tar, nakedness, and bondage-clad men galore. I had no idea what I was watching. It reminded me of her music videos, but with no Lady Gaga music. 

To be honest, a perfume commercial didn’t do the big idea justice. The idea of commercialism and provocative art just wasn't gelling this time, unfortunately. 

However, there were many commercials that made up for it. The Carlton Beer ad was perfect—just watch as the burglars and cops go over the hill.

Another highlight was Dove, where I cried, obviously. The sketches were heart-breaking when you see how differently people view themselves compared to how other people view them.

APES had a clever ad, which to me was one of the highlights of the night produced by ad agency Ogilvy & Mather Chicago. It shows what message can be sent when a gorilla and a can of white paint are mixed together.

The last batch of commercials of the night had a mixed response from the audience. Intel and Toshiba teamed together and made a series of videos (more like short films) that had the message “The beauty inside”.

The shorts were interesting to watch, but after almost forty minutes, it felt like way too much.

Visit http://wag.ca/visit/entertainment/film/display,event/521/2013-cannes-lions for more information on where and when you can see these awesome commercials! DON’T MISS OUT!