
Who has a chance for the Lions at Cannes?
Interview with Agata Nowotnik and Szymon Dziewięcki
– The Cannes Lions Festival has a special significance for the younger generation. We observe industry trends which, after all, not only influence the creative industry here and now, but also determine its course, which is difficult to be indifferent to – Agata Nowotnik and Szymon Dziewięcki from SEC Newgate CEE, winners of the Young Creatives 2024 competition in the PR category, share their observations for Wirtualne Media.
The Cannes Lions advertising festival has a special significance for the younger generation. We observe industry trends which, after all, not only influence the creative industry here and now, but also determine its course, which is difficult to be indifferent to. Especially when we realise that it is creativity that does not ask us about our age and seniority, but gives the young the chance to fight for their place in the industry.
Contrary to appearances, festival discussions and panels are not always a source of inspiration. At Cannes, simple and sometimes perverse messages stand out. Of these, we were particularly struck by the words of columnist Mark Ritson, who argued that creativity alone is not enough – we should never forget the role of strategy and a well-placed brand diagnosis.
AI in campaigns – the ‘prize hen’
We looked at the industry’s attitude to AI with uncertainty. According to Guy Marks of PHD Worldwide, the phenomenon of generative AI lies in the record-breaking time it has taken from inception to real impact on society (4 years of GAI vs an estimated 15 years of the metaverse). This fascination is undoubtedly showing. This year’s PR campaigns either solved problems generated, nomen omen, by AI, or used AI to draw attention to weighty issues.
It was this year’s prize-laying hen. A headache for PR adepts, on the other hand. We are not going to endlessly disenchant the ‘bias’ of algorithms and AI’s hurtful worldviews. Similarly, generating the future or the past looks like an AI one-trick pony, which, although it opens up new spaces for human creativity to exploit, does not in itself rank among the pinnacle of creativity. Two years ago, to bring back the memory of athlete Aida dos Santos, the brand (Centauro) was preparing an Olympic outfit to do her justice after decades. Today, to bring back the memory of the Brazilian footballer (Itau), we ‘prompt’ rather than sew.
It is, of course, hard to underestimate the expertise in gathering data to make AI campaigns happen. As Mira Murati, co-founder of OpenAI, argued, artificial intelligence is supposed to enhance creativity. AI wants to stay with the creative industry for the long term. So much so that, in addition to simple solutions to streamline office mailoz, it is already preparing artificial personae, mimicking focus studies with, for example, CEOs of large companies in B2B projects. Scary and fascinating.
Focusing on the human
The human-centric trend, as it were, gave a counterbalance to the AI narrative. PepsiCo talked about it, it was reinforced in its CBO presentation by P&G. However, Yael Cesarcas (R/GA) spoke most clearly about our advantage over AI: ‘if you use the data available on the web to find out something about a target audience – AI will do it faster and better. We mainly see human aspirations in the data, not facts. Go out to people, ask and learn. AI won’t do that.’ In the process, he took a swipe at Generation Z itself, which, while claiming to care about the planet and ethical business, is happy to buy fast fashion products. There was little about Generation Z itself this year. Much less than two years ago. Apparently we are not so cool anymore.
Cannes Lions is invariably thousands of brilliant entries
What about the competition? Our competition assignment was to create a campaign for Jood, a Moroccan organisation supporting people in crisis of homelessness. We are pleased with the outcome of our collaboration, and are further pleased with the positive feedback from the jury. The lack of an accolade, although difficult at first, undoubtedly strengthened our ambition and encouraged the principle ‘If the idea doesn’t scare you, it’s not big enough’. This was reinforced by another panellist, Kika Douglas, according to whom fighting discomfort is the best strategy for unlocking innovation and overcoming problems.
Cannes Lions continues to be a celebration of creativity, which manifests itself primarily in thousands of brilliant works. Although it is also important to recognise these worrying trends, we return from Cannes filled with ideas and fascinated by human creativity. Creativity is about to become a universal currency, where seniority and experience do not count so much. Thus – a huge opportunity for all the ‘young lions’ of the creative industry.
