Canada had a healthy showing in Cannes Sunday morning with five agencies earning spots on the Direct shortlist at the 63rd International Festival of Creativity.
Leo Burnett Toronto, Cossette Toronto and Rethink each earned two nods in the competition, while BBDO Toronto and John St. walk away with one nomination a piece.
Rethink earned nominations for its work with The American Association of University Women (AAUW). The public service video called “#TheReal10,” used the news of the U.S. Treasury’s plan to put a woman on the American $10 bill to draw attention to the wage gap between men and women. The effort also received a nomination in the Promo & Activation competition.
“Life Unpaused,” the follow up to SickKids Foundation’s hugely successful “Better Tomorrows” campaign, earned Cossette Toronto its two nominations in the Direct competition. (“Better Tomorrows” was created by the hospital’s former agency of record JWT.)
Meanwhile, Leo Burnett Toronto is in the running for “Coming Soon” – a stunt for Raising the Roof designed to put homelessness on the radar leading up to federal election.
Single nominations went to:
- BBDO Toronto for “Skittles Holiday Pawn Shop”
- John St. for “#CoverTheAthlete,” which also showed up twice on the Promo & Activation shortlist.
The Direct Lions will be awarded during a gala ceremony in Cannes Monday night.
The Direct jury has a Canadian representative, Steph Mackie owner of Mackie Biernacki in Toronto. In total, the competition saw 3,097 entries, up from 2,813 last year.
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