What Are France's Chances at Cannes 2018?

Burger King Belgium Whopper Gate

Georges Mohammed-Chérif: Without a hint of favouritism, let’s start with a Buzzman campaign. The best ideas are always the simplest. When the creative team came up with this clash of kings to celebrate the arrival of Burger King in Belgium, it was obvious we had to do it. It was also key for us to kick-start our collaboration with Burger King Belgium with a campaign that we would not have been able to do in the French market. The funniest part is that this PR success got boosted by the Belgian monarchy itself.

Ubisoft The Baptism

Mark Forgan and Jamie Standen: An engrossing trailer for Far Cry 5 from DDB Paris. It feels very far away from the advertising world, in the best way possible.

Greenpeace France Orizon

Mark Forgan and Jamie Standen: A bait and switch from Greenpeace France. What looked like a real estate company selling tomorrow’s beachfront property (due to rising sea levels) was actually an awareness campaign during the COP21 in Germany.

Georges Mohammed-Chérif: Another environmental awareness campaign. Not many campaigns leverage data in a smart way, but it is the core job of Artefakt, the agency behind this idea. The way this simulation makes rising water levels scarily realistic is brilliant. It could almost be a business model. In fact, I wouldn’t be too surprised if real start-ups begin using this model in a few years.

La Forêt Bet on a Murderer

Mark Forgan and Jamie Standen: Actually being able to bet on who is the murderer in a crime TV series? It’s such an obvious idea that it’s surprising it hasn’t been done before. Which is why this campaign from Publicis Conseil might win something at Cannes.

Lacoste Save Our Species

Georges Mohammed-Chérif: It is always impressive when a brand changes one of its product’s aspects for communication purposes, even more so when it affects something as fundamental as the logo. BETC went all-in with great packaging and a carefully conceived unboxing experience. It is no surprise that all the shirts sold out so quickly.

Ford Predictive Tweets

Mark Forgan and Jamie Standen: From closer to home at Ogilvy Paris. Ford predicted every thrill and spill at the 25h of Le Mans by forecasting every single possible outcome – just like the predictive technologies in Ford vehicles do.

Intermarché Les Bons Légumes

Georges Mohammed-Chérif: Romance keeps on with its incredible work for Intermarché. I could have selected any one of their films, like the Christmas tale of kids trying to keep Santa Claus fit. But I think that this campaign is the most likely to clean up at Cannes this year. The best part of it is its OOH teasing, that thousands of people must have seen without noticing the mistake.