Creativity at this year’s Cannes Lions was a study in contrasts. AI was everywhere the eye could see… at the centre of the tent, in panels, in yacht briefings, in conversations. But its relentless proliferation didn’t find its way into the work that won the shiny metals. For that, the spotlight remained firmly on profoundly human concepts, rooted in emotion, clarity and craft.
Film, in particular, reflected this tension. On one side, short-form content is eating into marketing budgets and TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube Shorts dictate how brands connect with audiences. But inside the jury room, the winners tell a different story. The campaigns that truly stood out were overwhelmingly long-form—narratives that took their time to breathe, connect, and resonate. Short-form, by comparison, struggled to leave a mark.
Valerie Madon, the APAC chief creative officer for McCann Worldgroup, also a Film Lions juror, said in an interview at Cannes with Campaign Asia-Pacific, “We hunted for standout short-form work, but only a handful delivered. Among those, Telstra’s ‘Better on a Better Network’ stood out as a rare example of how to use the standard 30-second canvas to great effect.”
30 seconds is the standard length of a TV or online ad, the industry's bread and butter, but a tough gig.
“Short-form is a fantastic canvas for creativity, but it requires skill, craft, focus, and discipline to excel. Telstra’s campaign delivered a clear, compelling message with precision to earn a Gold Lion,” said Madon. But even with its sharp execution, Telstra’s ad fell short of the emotional depth and visceral impact needed to claim the coveted Grand Prix, the festival’s highest honour. So what did Grand Prix winners like Channel 4’s ‘Considering What?’ and L’Oréal Paris’ 17-minute documentary ‘The Final Copy of Ilon Specht', do differently to leave a lasting impression?
“These films were felt in the heart, the gut, and the mind,” said Kate Stanners, Film jury chair and global chief creative officer at Saatchi & Saatchi. For Stanners, the magic of Film lies in its ability to connect with audiences on every level. “Film talks to you. When it’s done well, it makes you think, feel, or do something you didn’t expect.”
Film remains the festival’s oldest and largest category in terms of volume, with 1,636 entries and 115 shortlists this year. Yet the dearth of truly exceptional short-form work felt like a missed opportunity. “Short-form content is everywhere in our feeds, but it didn’t dominate here [at the Lions], because it’s not enough to just be brief,” Madon quips. “You have to use the format to tell a bold, emotionally charged story. That’s what’s missing right now.”
Stanners agreed, pointing out the delicate balance film requires. “It’s so difficult because film is the marriage of craft and idea to make you feel something and move you,” she said. “It’s not just about execution—it’s about creating something that stays with you long after you’ve seen it.”
Done right, humour is more than a punchline
Humour made a comeback at this year’s Cannes Lions, and it wasn’t subtle. While Cannes Lions has to officially crunch the submission numbers for insights and trends, entries spike in 2024 when Lions introduced the Humour as a subcategory. “In this category, the work has to entertain to win. That’s the entry point. If it’s not entertaining, don’t even enter. Almost 80% of the work that won in Film, had some style of humour,” said Madon.
Take KFC Thailand’s ‘Let There Be Cake’, which swiped a Gold for its quirky, culture-savvy approach. Or the unexpected laugh in L’Oréal Paris’ Ilon Specht, where at one point, Specht stares down the interviewer and blurts bluntly, “F*** you.” When he asks, “Why f*** me?” she retorts, “Because you’re a man.” “It’s humour that’s sharp, layered and purposeful. Humour has come a long way from the slapstick commercials of the past.”
This resurgence is a breath of fresh air for an industry that, for years, sidelined funny in favour of earnest. Kantar's research backs it up: advertisers spent the past two decades leaning into serious tones, forgetting humour on the way. Data shows that humorous ads are 27% more expressive, 14% more involving, and 11% more distinct.
And in November 2023 when Cannes introduced a dedicated Humour sub-category, suddenly, the industry remembered how powerful a well-crafted joke can be. So, did Cannes spark this shift, or was it simply mirroring the changes in society?
Madon believes it’s a bit of both. “Humour has always been ingrained in APAC advertising,” she said, pointing to Thailand, the Philippines, Japan, and India as examples. “These markets have long understood that humour makes people remember, relate and buy.” Perhaps, Cannes stamp of approval signalled to brands what creatives always knew: humour is one of the sharpest tools to make a complicated point succinctly.
“The industry is using humour as a creative strategy, not just a device to entertain.” She pointed to ‘The Last Birthday’, a Lion winning campaign for Association Valentin Haüy by Josiane Paris that used humour in a dark, psycho-thriller way. “It was deeply disturbing but also incredibly clever. Humour doesn’t have to be light-hearted, it can be sharp, unsettling, and play on different narrative styles to be highly effective.”
Yet, not everything hit the mark. Madon lamented the absence of Japanese humour in Film shortlists, which has often brought surreal, culturally distinct comedy to the global stage. “That’s something I want to tell Japan,” she said. “‘Hey, bring back the Japanese humour… the world missed you.”
Challenges of scale and the evolution of purpose
APAC had plenty to celebrate: 118 Lions, up 27% from last year. But zoom out a little, and the cracks start to show. The region’s creative work dazzles at home but often struggles to travel. “A lot of Asian campaigns are brilliant in their own markets but don’t scale well,” Madon admits. “And when I say scalability, I don't mean go global, you can make your local insight land everywhere.”
Ogilvy Singapore’s ‘Vaseline Verify’ is a masterclass in this: a campaign that started specific and ended up winning across a raft of categories, including a Grand Prix in Health and Wellness, because it tapped into universal relevance while staying true to the brand's story.
Yet, compare APAC’s fragmented wins to Brazil, a single market that took home 99 Lions, outpacing all of APAC countries. Only India (32 Lions) and Australia (27 Lions) from the region made it into the global top 10.
In a previous interview with Campaign Asia-Pacific, Titanium jury president, Judy John said presentation and CMO bravery matter, too. “In regions like the US, there’s heavy investment in crafting case studies. The level of polish and money put into them is incredibly high. APAC has brilliant ideas, but the way the work is presented doesn’t always match up. And some CMOs in the region aren’t as brave as their Western counterparts who are more willing to take risks and prove themselves. I'd love to see braver decision-making CMOs and CCOs (chief communications officers) in APAC, because the creativity and talent are absolutely there,” said John, the global CCO of Edelman.
To John’s point, culture plays a central role in shaping creativity, and in APAC, that influence is impossible to ignore. Singapore, the region’s unofficial official creative hub, is a nation driven by left-brain professions—lawyers, bankers, coders. Here, creativity often feels like an afterthought, a luxury rather than a necessity. The late Lee Kuan Yew, Singapore’s founding father, famously said, “Poetry is a luxury we cannot afford.” And that no-nonsense pragmatism still looms over our mindset.
Evolution of purpose is another trend that has been universally observed. Of the 34 Grand Prix awarded this year, 22 had a purpose-related theme. And this wasn’t saving the planet or planting trees or pulling heartstrings with award-baity work kind of purpose. But work that’s fine marriage between purpose, business and societal impact.
“Purpose felt different this year,” said Madon. “It’s not what a brand claims to stand for, but how it acts every day. And that’s tied to business. If it’s not driving commerce, it’s not working, and it’s not winning.”
Famously, “If it doesn’t sell, it isn’t creative.” Van Gogh might have thrown a sunflower at that logic, but in adland, Ogilvy wins... and that’s the gospel Madon is bringing back to her team.
