Cannes Contenders: USA

TUBI Interface Interruption

Pranking 115 million people at the same time? That feels like a Cannes contender for sure!

I thoroughly enjoyed the simplicity of this stunt – which aimed to trick millions of Americans into thinking they sat on the remote at a suboptimal time – in a moment when going big usually answers the brief.

Clever in its execution and perfectly timed, this campaign tapped into Smart TV culture during the biggest broadcast moment of the year for advertisers, culminating in a magical idea that, in my estimation, only gets to happen once.

The Swedish Heartchild Foundation Heartbreak Drum Machine

I love how this work takes such a difficult topic – the value of supporting children and families affected by congenital heart disease – that requires real public awareness and finds a way that inspires our humanity on a whole new level that ultimately has the power to live forever.

Visually moving and sonically stunning, this work pushes creative boundaries in new and powerful ways.

Girls Who Code Girls Who Code Girls

Last December, Girls Who Code partnered with Mojo Supermarket to launch a personalized digital experience designed to tackle the gender gap in gaming, where men comprise 77% of developers compared to 20% of women. The effort allowed gamers to code and customize their own gaming characters, allowing fans to share the characters they have created and coded.

I like that this work helped create real action and conversation within the gaming community. Fostering a new generation of female developers, it has important real-world implications, and I hope to see our creative community celebrate it.

Native Traffic Stop

VCCP US launched this holiday work before I came on board, and it played a role in my desire to partner with this team. As you can see, it takes a perfectly mundane moment – a routine traffic stop – and turns it into a fun back-and-forth around whether the driver smells like eggnog from drinking or merely using Native products.

This spot tapped into comedy to help the challenger brand stand out in its space, cutting through the landscape of often emotional holiday work with a little humour.

Clash from the Past Clash of Clans

For those of you unfamiliar, Clash Of The Clans is a beloved free-to-play mobile strategy game that first hit screens in 2012. Instead of celebrating a tenth-anniversary last year, it celebrated a fake 40th anniversary. Thanks to Wieden’s creative thinking, fans got the most out of the glory days of 80s arcade games with the opportunity to imagine what the competition would have looked like in 1982.

I love the depth the team went to imagining the historical journey of Clash of Clans and how this work gave fans loads of nostalgic culture to experience. I think the detail and craft is sure to attract the attention of the judging committee!