Thursday, July 24, 2008

The young lions might be the true ones

Young Lions, that's the Cannes part for the juniors. All advertising professionals up to 28 years old in teams of two compete against each other in various categories, print, media, cyber and the most prestigious film. The film category works as follows, the teams have two days and two Nokia phones (great sponsoring really) to create 30-60 second ads. This years brief was MTV Switch, show that saving energy/being green can be fun and doesn't have to include consuming – that's me paraphrasing it, don't hang on to it too much. So the team from Argentina won gold, the US guys silver and the Italian team bronze. The Argentinean idea was the best hands down, so simple, it's funny if you see all the other teams staging big shoots with props and they just get a couple of people in the shower. Have a look.



Check out the Young Lions youtube stuff, there's lots of it.
It's also fun to have a look through the videos to see how the different creative teams are getting on, how they worked on the briefs and how they filmed their spots. The serious Austrians working only drinking water, the Brazilians having an actual event idea rather than an ad, the danish guys changing their idea at the last minute, the Japanese going hardcore on their storyboards while the UK girls sip cocktails while looking for inspiration and hating on technology.

Speaking of whom – the British didn't do well in any of the categories. In fact in the whole young lions history they never won. Why? They seem to do well in europe, but not on a international stage? In the UK (well, London) young creatives seem to be forced to focus on strategies, big ideas, that's what you have to put in your portfolio to get you a job, right? What about crafting stuff? Actually making and doing stuff, films, products, whatever. Art directing print ads for example – UK creatives don't learn design/executional skills, it's all about ideas & scamps. In all other countries every art director has to be sharp on the mac if they want to get hired. Here advertising students talk of mac monkeys who do their stuff up, relying on designers and art workers who can be afforded with the big budgets. One of the points Tony Davidson cared about during our chat was the lack of creatives actually bringing their ideas to life. 'Everyone can have ideas', he says, 'but actually making them is where they stop at and rely on others, so lots of good stuff never gets made.' (I'm paraphrising again, it just looks more credible as a quote I reckon). This explains why they hired a great team a while ago, product designers Tom & David. Of course they have ideas, but they actually realise them. I'd call them Creative Artisans, a term coined by Julien, my former flatmate. Is that the way forward?

This Young Lions outcome predicts yes, creatives need to know more than pencil and paper. And this contest is a great one. It's something we could be judging countries creatively on. Unlike the 'real' Cannes Lions all teams have equal resources, no glamorous directors, no designers nor typographers, no scam ads just for the sake of awards, no clients, only the creative outcome counts on this one. Idea is still everything, but without execution it's nothing.

44 comments:

Anonymous said...

great post, thanks.

Anonymous said...

This year particularly the UK young team was unbelievable shit. Two barbies they sent just to see them topless. Disappointing.

Anonymous said...

but they haven't even shown them topless… their introduction videos sucked as well.

how did they get chosen anyway? how does it work? I heard of teams going there by knowing people, rather than by the standard of their book, shite.

Anonymous said...

keyword: hotties.

Anonymous said...

keyword: hotties.

Anonymous said...

It's a tricky area. I agree film and print everyone should be able to do but Cyber is a tricky category. To produce something great you have to be able to program using Flash actionscript, which is an enormous skill to learn, in amongst coming up with great ideas!
You only have a certain amount of hours in the day. I'd rather use them coming up with more great ideas than learning about arrays and object oriented programming.
I saw the work and the teams that won had no big ideas behind the them, it was just clever technical execution.
Which is why London has the best strategic thinkers in the world.

Anonymous said...

No one is advocating to spending less time on the idea. It's just once you have the idea you should be able to pursuit to its full potential and I'm with Waldo here, you should be able to know how things work to a good excent in order to ask great things from collaborators.

That's why the best directors in the world are those who know every job there's in the set. They could do all of them really but their real talent would be wasted. But just the fact they know every little job works, they are able to demand it to be fulfill in the best possible way.

Bottom line: Stop being so fucking lazy.

Anonymous said...

as regards anonymous 9:18 "keyword hotties"
dont talk such crap. just because you think like that doesnt mean everyone does. and either way, it certainly isnt the uk girls' fault.
their appearance should be irrelevant and I am sick to death of male creatives reducing us female creatives to mere eye candy.

jpandtem@googlemail.com said...

Yeah!

I agree!

I mean, my partner and I are superhot! you know, 'PINNCHBUM HOT' and it's sooo hard always being judged for our looks!


God guys are so guyish these days...stupid men..

In all seriousness though, do you really think all male creatives view female teams like that? I thought feminist outbirsts of that nature were a 90's thing?

If the teams work deserved plaudits, i'm sure 'mr 9:18' would of happily thrown them their way.

If any gender should have 'current complaint' it's the testosterone crew. Have you counted how many pro feminist/anti male adverts are out there at the moment! Jesus!

(a man by all accounts, but that could change)

Anonymous said...

thats an interesting issue though isn't it, in a week when everyone was slating Mandy and Sarah after getting sacked from w+k there were insinuations about them giving sexual favours to get the job- then with the Cannes team being chosen on their looks rather than talent, seems that these slurs are only directed at female teams...which does seem indicative of sexism to me, don't think those types of comments would be made of a male team or am i wrong?

Anonymous said...

but then again maybe the slurs are warrented?! so its just stating fact which wouldn't be sexist? dunno i think i've confused myself...i think its easier to dismiss female teams but here i am talking to myself when i should get back to work...
all i know is that jp and tem's attractiveness is just a sexual harassment suit waiting to happen...

Anonymous said...

liz is hot

Anonymous said...

I would have asked weather or not you guys are staying at W+K for another week but i dont think anyone cares anymore

Anonymous said...

I would have thought they'd have said if they were staying any longer, so perhaps today is their last?

Anonymous said...

we bugged everyone, but no luck. it seems pretty much like the last day at W+K.

Anonymous said...

if that is the case wal, then bad luck.
as long as you tried your best, i sure you got heaps of experience out of your short time there, this will look great on the CV and at least you have achieved a placement there. not many creative's are even rewarded with that. congratulations. you can walk out stupid with your head held high!

Anonymous said...

Here's how the Young Lions selection process worked. You submit 3 or 4 of your best campaigns from your book to the IPA which then go in front of the judges; Mark Giusti from GT, Rory Sutherland and Kate Stanners.
I doubt very much these people cared about whether the teams were male/female.

Anonymous said...

As long as you pleaded your case to stay Wal, you owed yourselves that much after working so hard just to get the placement. It's just a shame the bugging didn't quite work.

Keep in touch with the people you've met, and you never know, further along the line you may get your dream job (if W&K is your dream job?)

Anonymous said...

anon 8.06

The girl film team had the Halo 3 work in their book.
It won the Grand Prix. There was a website with all the UK representatives books on view. Will try and track it down

Maybe UK teams are crap over 24hrs...

Anonymous said...

would be super interesting to see JP!

Anonymous said...

Which Halo 3 work? The Grand Prix was done by T.A.G. and unfortunately there are no girls in the credits...

Anonymous said...

Can't get on to the Cannes website (need password-forgot it)

Nathalie Turton is credited at the Andy's

http://www.andyawards.com/winners/

It was the fake documentary about the war photographer that they worked on

Anonymous said...

I think they meant the titanium lion, Seb.

She overlooked the video production which is like 5% of the whole thing. She didn't come up with any of the ideas which are from McCann SF. Not that it means any less merit but it's certainly not the way some of you are trying to sell it. She got lucky to have participated in a project like this. Good for her.

Anonymous said...

There used to be a link to their portfolio's on this site. Gone now.

http://www.creativematch.co.uk/viewNews/?95968

Anonymous said...

UK entry video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2CkQlDirauk

sorry but their ad was rubbish! I'm embarrassed to be British

Anonymous said...

Bloody hell, anyone who got offended by the so called sexism remarks here should watch that ad first and then STFU.

"Our first idea is to have Lolly naked..."

And since the'idea' in the end was a striptease, I guess you were right, those two barbies are all brains.

Anonymous said...

The idea wasn't particularly strong, and their end line was poor 'we can't swap the planet but there are loads of ways to be a little greener'

Anonymous said...

catchy endline!

these girls got a job?

Anonymous said...

Those girls are a complete joke.

I've just showed some female creatives and they're f*cking fuming...

Anonymous said...

Surely dopey posh girls should be working as account women, not creatives...

Anonymous said...

guys itching to know any updates on the w+k progress? how last day went if indeed it was your last day? hopefully there is some good news....

Anonymous said...

Think Friday was their last day Anon 2:42

Wal
"we bugged everyone, but no luck. it seems pretty much like the last day at W+K."

]-[appy Thought said...

The English work is terrible its true. No-one cares who you are until you've done something great.

"We believe in pushing the boundaries", whatever... Cliche city.

The Sing Before the Shower thing was an addy idea badly executed, went on 30 seconds too long, no-one could have crafted that piece worse so I think the idea of skill is irrelevant. They had the best idea no argument, and they seem not to be up their own ass, which helps but there was no directorial skill in their ad which I think makes your point moot until we see their print work.

Anonymous said...

that idea must have taken three minutes tops... sorted, spend rest of the time sunbathing and drinking cocktails.

sorry ladies but from that video you can see why this is a mans world.

Anonymous said...

Don't mind this losers gals!
There's a vacancy at Wiedens now that Mandy and Sarah are gone! Go for it!
Wear your barbie dresses, yay!

Anonymous said...

New post please, Wal.

Anonymous said...

Leave the man alone.
He has every right to be depressed.
It's his blog and he'll cry if he wants to. You'd cry too if it happened to you.

Anonymous said...

Why is Wal supposedly depressed? Sure he's not a W&K anymore, but he seemed to take that on the chin.

When does TBWA placement start for you both? Enjoy it! And keep us posted!

Anonymous said...

What do you mean why? W+K was Wal's dream agency. You don't get that kind of chance that often. It's ok to be disappointed. Anyone who's been in that situation can understand that. It takes time to get back on the horse.

But you'll be fine, Wally. To be honest, I never pictured you two at W+K, different styles I guess.

TBWA doesn't sound like a great idea right now, sadly. Do you have any other plans? Surely there has to be more places you've never been. Mother maybe? They like passionate people with or without good books.

Anonymous said...

Disappointed and depressed are two different things.

Just because it hasn't worked out at W&K this time doesn't mean it never will. I'm sure they'll keep pursuing work there if it's their dream agency.

Think about what you might have done differently at W&K, if anything. But don't sit and mull over it too much, get out there and experience other agencies, even TBWA and see what it's like - you might surprise yourselves and love working somewhere you hadn't really considered an option.

Anonymous said...

TBWA is a mess right now, not worth going there on placement as they've hired 130 junior teams in the last year. I would say go there and get some run work out but in reality any work with any balls gets blown out even before it goes to client.

They're planners are probably the worst i've seen since saatchis.
And they're awful!

Anonymous said...

I would give VCCP a miss then as well.

Fecking Planners!

Anonymous said...

So, we wouldn't recommend Saatchi's, TBWA or VCCP.

Where would you suggest is a good place to go? That might be more helpful and positive :)

I guess Mother gets one vote already.

Anonymous said...

Those pathetic girls are everything that is wrong with advertising. Way to perpetuate an outdated stereotype ladies!

It's unfortunate that they feel they have to resort to such a dull, outdated and done-to-death idea... especially as there was no client around to piss on anything! o_O