Regardless of who you are, where you live, or what you do for a living, high likelihood is that you are aware of the Cannes Film Festival. From the 20-minute standing ovations, the boos, the back room deals and the anointing of the season’s awards contenders, everyone from a top ranking Hollywood producer to teenager YouTube creator in North Dakota is familiar with the event. What many are not aware of, however, is the gathering that happens a month or so later in the same location: The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. Why should film people have all of the fun?
Since its first outing in 1954, Cannes Lions has been bringing the creative communications industry together every year at its one-of-a-kind event in Cannes to learn, network and celebrate. This year, from June 17-21, innovators from across all creative industries will meet to attend trainings and listen to some of the most inventive leaders in their field discuss strategy in a dynamic environment. It’s not hard to see why the best and brightest flock to the sandy beaches of the French Riviera for the industry insights that Cannes Lions provides. It’s a wish-list attend for any marketing professional trying to anticipate the next global trend that can help them reach their brand’s goals.
This year’s conference will feature some heavy hitting speakers: Alfonso Cuaron, Shonda Rhimes, Dwyane Wade, Sheryl Sandberg, Lorne Michaels and national treasure Jeff Goldblum to name a few. Also in attendance will be C-level execs spanning the world’s biggest brands and media agencies, sharing insights and predictions about—of course– the future of creativity.
One topic that will certainly get its stage time at the event is the growth of video advertising and how to optimize efforts around it. IAB’s Video Advertising Spend Report released in April found that advertisers will spend 25% more on digital video than they did last year and–of particular relevance to us here at Giant Media–Native Advertising continues to grow with just over half of advertisers reporting an increase in their spend in 2018 compared to 2017. One session at Cannes Lions will specifically explore “The Future of AI in Advertising,” promising to answer the question “Why is a personalized and targeted omnichannel platform imperative for companies to adapt?”
Because these topics will be top of mind at the marketing industry event of the year, Giant Media will be on location in Cannes to share, through our CEO John Cobb, our contextual video advertising expertise and updates on the latest advancements to VuePlanner®, our proprietary, AI-powered, insight-driven tool for buying brand suitable, contextually relevant video across YouTube.
So, if you’re heading to Cannes next week, congrats! It’s sure to be a valuable and enriching experience for all who attend. And if you’re interested in learning more about how Giant Media can optimize video ad spend with contextually relevant targeting to ensure your message reaches the right person, at the right time, drop us a line here to schedule time with John at Cannes.
Can’t make it to France? Tune in to the Cannes Lions live stream to learn what the future holds in a vast array of creative industries and then contact us at any time to get started with better video ad campaigns across YouTube, the open web, and even Connected TV.