A tale of two Cannes
Regarding Cannes’ biggest accolades, machine learning was distinctly missing from the case studies.
DoorDash’s Super Bowl 58 ad picked up the Titanium Grand Prix. Elsewhere, the two Grand Prix winners in the Film Lions were “Play it Safe,” a musical ad from The Monkeys (part of Accenture Song Sydney) for Sydney Opera House, and Orange’s “WoMen’s Football,” which went viral for highlighting gender bias in soccer.
The latter campaign had already scooped the Grand Prix in Entertainment for Sport earlier in the week.
Some took Orange’s recognition as a win for generative AI since the creative leaned on the tech to help with conception and to stitch in some of the VFX. However, Youri Guerassimov, joint CEO and CCO at Marcel, told ADWEEK the team ultimately decided the most interesting and accurate approach “wasn’t [to use] AI,” but to rely on real footage.
Debbi Vandeven, global chief creative officer at VML and Titanium Lions jury president, added to the chorus: “A lot of people think the ‘WoMen’s Football’ ad had something to do with AI, and it [didn’t], it just [relied on] visual effects.”
Jouke Vuurmans, chief creative officer at Media.Monks and a juror on the Digital Craft track, said most AI entries lacked “clear purpose or creativity.” Ultimately, Spotify’s “Spreadbeats” by FCB New York took home the Grand Prix in Digital Craft, without any input from machine learning.
However, Vuurmans said AI combined with “soul” did yield some interesting entries, highlighting Deutsche Telekom’s “Ella – Without Consent” campaign, which used a deepfake to trigger debate on sharing photos of children online, as one more “thoughtful application of the technology.”
“AI doesn’t change the judging script. We are still looking for transformative ideas and craft,” he added.
Could he see an AI Lion in Cannes’ future?
“No. AI can and is being used in so many ways. And while it might be tempting to see it as the trend that overshadows other creative, this isn’t the case,” he explained, saying Spotify’s Grand Prix win underscored this.
