We don't ordinarily like to spoil surprises here at AdNews, but nevertheless, the team at Leo Burnett are back, with a track record of 84% accuracy, to predict who is going to be taking home a trophy next week at the 62nd annual Cannes Lions.
This year marks the 28th anniversary of Leo Burnett Cannes predictions, with the official selection chosen by a team led by Leo Burnett Worldwide chief creative officer Mark Tutssel.
The sole Australian campaign to make the predictions list is M&C Saatchi's 'Clever Buoy' campaign for Optus. Other notable work includes Forsman & Bodenfors '805 Million Names' campaign for UN World Food Programme, Leo Burnett's '#LikeAGirl' campaign for Procter & Gamble – Always and R/GA's Beats by Dre campaign.
"The thread that binds this collection is that human purpose sits at the heart of each of these brilliant pieces of work," Tutssel said.
"Whether it's P&G Always launching a cultural movement or Nike designing an immersive experience, ideas that create real value, fuel our imagination and ignite change in human behaviour will prevail in Cannes."
The year long research used to curate the predictions helped uncover six emerging trends in the industry that Leo Burnett say you can expect to see in France this year.
Leo Burnett said that exploring the connection between technology, data and ideas has become a growing area for marketers with more brands looking to “make the world a safer place.” Examples of camapigns that are building on this trend include 'Clever Buoy' along with Samsung’s 'Safety truck' campaign and the Hammerhead, a product developed by R/GA New York to tackle road safety.
Other trends include work that builds on the interactivity of screens and athletes portrayed not as superhuman, but as human beings.
Leo Burnett said that moving away from storytelling into “stories” is another trend that has unfolded over the year, using the John Lewis 'Monty the Penguin' Christmas campaign as an example of capturing the imagination of an audience. Similarly, work that shatters stereotypes is another trend, further emphasised by the introduction of the Cannes Glass Lion award to recognise work that “implicitly or explicitly addresses issues of gender inequality or prejudice.”
Finally, the agency singled out small, online social behaviour which has been given a focus over the year. The ALS 'Ice Bucket Challenge' is the stand out example of using the power of an idea to compel awareness and creation.
"The depth and breadth of innovative thinking this year is astonishing," Tutssel said.
"This is work that draws upon a convergence of media, technology, self-expression and creativity to deliver remarkable brand ideas that have transformational impact."
See the full list of predictions below:
• Beats by Dre, “The Game Before the Game” / “Lebron James in Re:Established 2014” R/GA (London / Los Angeles, UK & USA)
• United Nations World Food Programme, “805 Million Names” Forsman & Bodenfors (Stockholm, Sweden)
• Leica Cameras, “100” F/Nazca Saatchi & Saatchi (Sao Paulo, Brasil)
• Ikea “Experience The Power of A BookBook” BBH Asia Pacific (Singapore, Singapore)
• Procter & Gamble – Always “#LikeAGirl” Leo Burnett (Toronto / Chicago / London, Canada, USA & UK)
• Under Armour “I Will What I Want – Gisele Bundchen” Droga5 (New York City, USA)
• ZDK – Center for Democratic Culture “Nazis Against Nazis – Germany’s Most Involuntary Charity Walk” GGH Lowe, Grabarz & Partner (Hamburg, Germany)
• John Lewis “Monty The Penguin” Adam&EveDDB (London, UK)
• Optus “Clever Buoy” M&C Saatchi (Sydney, Australia)
• du – Tuesday Movie Promotion “Too Insulting” / “Too Distressing” / “Too Informative” Leo Burnett (Dubai, UAE)
• OK Go + Honda Uni-Cub “I Won’t Let You Down” Mori / Drill / Dentsu / MoriMori / Kaibutsu / Birdman / Kirifuda / Creative Power Unit (Tokyo, Japan)
• Honda – Civic Type-R “The Other Side” Wieden + Kennedy (London, UK)
• Smart “The Dancing Traffic Light” BBDO (Berlin, Germany)
• Hammerhead “Hammerhead” R/GA (New York City, USA)
• Samsung “The Safety Truck” Leo Burnett (Buenos Aires, Argentina)
• GEICO “Unskippable: Family / Elevator / High Five” The Martin Agency (Richmond, USA)
• Nike – Basketball “House of Mamba” AKQA (Shanghai / London, China & UK)
• Guinness – Africa “Made Of Black” AMV BBDO (London, UK)
• Gatorade “Made In New York” TBWAChiatDay (Los Angeles, USA)
• Ubisoft – Assassin’s Creed: Unity “Unity” Sid Lee (Paris, France) - See more at:
Have something to say on this? Share your views in the comments section below. Or if you have a news story or tip-off, drop us a line at adnews@yaffa.com.au
Sign up to the AdNews newsletter, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter for breaking stories and campaigns throughout the day.