John St. has two shots at a Cannes Lions for its efforts to address sexist media coverage in the world of professional sports.
On Sunday, the firm was among three Canadian agencies shortlisted in the Promo & Activation competition at the advertising festival.
The shortlisted campaign, “#CoverTheAthlete,” tackled the gendered questions female athletes are asked about their physical appearance. The campaign included a 30-second spot showing famous male athletes like Sidney Crosby and Michael Phelps being asked similar questions on topics like body hair and female fans. It has pulled in over 1.6 million views on YouTube since its release last fall.
“#CoverTheAthlete” was also shortlisted once in the Direct competition. The campaign was led by two of Marketing‘s 30 Under 30 alumnae, Jessica Schnurr and Hannah Smit. Schnurr and Smit are now working at 180 L.A. and 180 Amsterdam, respectively.
Rethink, meanwhile, was shortlisted for “#TheReal10,” a campaign crafted in partnership with Wongdoody Los Angeles for The American Association of University Women. Like “#CoverTheAthlete,” the campaign addressed sexism, though through a different lens. “#TheReal10” reimagined the American $10 bill to include the face of a woman and a woman of colour with new demarcations of $7.8 and $6.4 to illustrate the pay gap faced by each group.
The campaign was also nominated twice in the Direct competition.
Cossette Montreal also scored a single shortlist appearance for “Max67,” a campaign it created for McDonald’s Canada.
The Promo Lions will be handed out during a gala ceremony on Monday night.
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