The Cannes Lions Competition has, traditionally, been a spot the place senior-level company workers congregate to drink, community and vie for awards. Attending the occasion is tougher for early-career advertisers. Budgetary considerations, and the sheer lack of related on-site alternatives for younger folks, create a barrier.
Some companies and third-party trade organizations are pushing again on that barrier by sponsoring alternatives for younger folks to attend the pageant. Choosing which early-career workers to ship to the pageant introduces different challenges, however it’s a method trade our bodies can do their half to help worker profession trajectories and foster inclusion on the occasion.
Adweek spoke with first-time Cannes attendees and the organizations that sponsored their journey to study extra about their applications.
“From the surface trying in, I suppose you don’t see numerous the opposite issues that go on [at Cannes], apart from the overall awards which are given out,” stated Conor Smith, a senior A/V designer at 26 company and MSQ Younger Lion who went to the pageant this yr for the primary time.
Inner competitions at companies
Businesses that ship younger creatives to the pageant create inner competitions for workers. Media.Monks hosts its NextUp.Monks competitors that its early-career creatives can compete in to win journey to Cannes, and extra particularly, a seat on the Cannes Lions Academies program.
The Academies expertise gives attendees classroom-style classes, together with networking alternatives. The Artistic Academy session admits simply 30 creatives complete.
“Having an inner competitors throughout your international crew to see not simply who desires to go to Cannes, however who deserves to go to Cannes by profitable a contest that exams their creativity, their response to a quick,” is a novel method, Steve Latham, head of studying at Cannes Lions Competition of Creativity, advised Adweek. Media.Monks works intently with Latham to construct out a bespoke agenda for the handful of creatives it sends to the pageant.
This yr’s winners, Yazad Dastur, junior copywriter at Media.Monks, and Anna Zhang, junior designer at Media.Monks, responded to a quick for Meta that requested they think about a novel VR expertise for the corporate. As many as 300 Media.Monks workers throughout 25 nations responded to the temporary.
“It’s actually nice to go to Cannes, however I really feel like going to Cannes to be part of a worldwide cohort with creatives from everywhere in the world goes to be so nice,” Zhang advised Adweek earlier than the occasion.
