Johannes Leonardo ~ co-founded by Aussie expat Leo Premutico ~ scores double Grand Prix as Cannes reveals Entertainment + Craft winners
Cannes Lions has announced the winners of the Entertainment Lions, Entertainment Lions for Gaming, Entertainment Lions for Music, Entertainment Lions for Sport, Design, Digital Craft, Film Craft and Industry Craft Lions in the second Awards Show of the Festival.
The standout winner of the night was independent New York creative agency Johannes Leonardo, co-founded by Aussie expat Leo Premutico, which picked up two Grands Prix for adidas’ “Original Forever” — taking out both the Entertainment Lions and Entertainment Lions for Music categories. Fellow Aussie expat Celia Mortlock (second from right), who cut her teeth at Clemenger BBDO before moving to New York, also worked on the winning campaign as Associate Creative Director at Johannes Leonardo.
The campaign drew on adidas’ cultural legacy with Oasis, partnering with the band to create official tour merch and cultural moments that built fandom across both new and longtime audiences.
Says Simon Cook, CEO, LIONS: “Our Jurors have set the creative benchmark with this year’s Entertainment and Craft Lion winners. This body of work spotlights how craft is transforming brands and consumer experience and how the power of fandom is building brand relevance and driving business growth.”
From 656 entries received in the Entertainment Lions, celebrating creativity that turns branded content into culture, 20 Lions were awarded: 3 Gold, 6 Silver, 10 Bronze.
Entertainment Lions Jury President, Chris Beresford-Hill, Worldwide Chief Creative Officer, BBDO Worldwide, says: “Choosing a Grand Prix was difficult, but in the end one piece of work stood apart because it understood the moment perfectly. At a time when so many brands are trying to manufacture relevance, this was a reminder that the most powerful thing a brand can do is show up in the right moment, for the right community, with something worth caring about.”
Entertainment Lions for Gaming, honouring creative work that connects people to brands through gameplay, received 216 entries, and 8 Lions were awarded by the Jury: 1 Gold, 2 Silver, 4 Bronze. The Grand Prix went to ‘Copycats Welcome’, for Clash Royale, by David, New York.
Entertainment Lions for Gaming Jury President, Lolly Thomson, Joint Global Chief Creative Officer, M+C Saatchi Group, said: “The Jury debated hard, but when we got there, we were unified. This year’s Grand Prix did something radical — an amnesty. Instead of lengthy IP battles, it went after the millions playing knock-offs and said: we see you, come home, bring everything with you.”
In Entertainment Lions for Music, celebrating creative musical collaborations and branded music content, 318 entries were received and 13 Lions awarded: 2 Gold, 2 Silver, 7 Bronze. The Jury also awarded two Grands Prix, to “Rosalía Ft. Björk, Yves Tumor – Berghain”, for Rosalía, by Canada, Barcelona / Rosalía, Barcelona; and “Original Forever”, for adidas, by Johannes Leonardo, New York / adidas, London.
Entertainment Lions for Music Jury President, Matt Murphy, Global Chief Creative Officer, 72andSunny, commented: “Ultimately, it came down to commitment. Going all in on an idea.”
From 660 entries received in the Entertainment Lions for Sport, honouring creativity that taps into fan culture, 21 Lions were awarded: 3 Gold, 6 Silver, 11 Bronze, with the Grand Prix going to ‘The Thousand Sponsors of Muni’, for Club Deportivo Municipal, by McCann, Lima.
Entertainment Lions for Sport Jury President, Shannon Washington, Chief Creative Officer and Managing Partner, 11 Ounces, said the work was Grand Prix-worthy because “this is fandom doing the work that money used to do, and community deciding what the future of a club looks like.”
In Design, from 792 entries received, 26 Lions were awarded: 5 Gold, 8 Silver and 13 Bronze. The Grand Prix was presented to “Apple TV Rebrand”, for Apple, by TBWA\Media Arts Lab, Los Angeles / Apple, Cupertino.
Digital Craft received 355 entries, and 11 Lions were awarded: 2 Gold, 3 Silver, 5 Bronze. The Grand Prix was presented to “Project Genie”, for Google, by Google, Mountain View.
From 1433 Film Craft entries, 43 Lions were awarded: 6 Gold, 15 Silver, 21 Bronze. The Grand Prix went to ‘Your Way Out’, for Coinbase, by Isle of Any, New York.
Notably, Film Craft Jury President this year was Pip Smart, Executive Producer and Partner at Australian production company Revolver, who said of the winning work: “‘Your Way Out’ was the film that organically rose to the top as we worked through the judging process… eventually it was hard to argue for any other piece for the Grand Prix.”
In Industry Craft, 649 entries were received and 18 Lions awarded: 2 Gold, 5 Silver, 10 Bronze. The Grand Prix was awarded to ‘Tiny Coffee Shops’ for De’Longhi, by LOLA, Madrid.
TBWA\Sydney won a Silver Lion in the Cannes Industry Craft Lions for mycar’s “The Sunburnt Car”.
Live on stage, the Cannes LionHeart Award, honouring an individual who has harnessed their platform to make a meaningful and lasting impact on the world, was presented to Oprah Winfrey, global media leader, producer, philanthropist and actress.
Register for FREE HERE and receive the Campaign Brief Daily Bulletin and/or the global Best Ads Best of the Week Bulletin. Subscribe to Campaign Brief Magazine.
#More Creative News #No paywalls #No annual membership fees
Subscribe to Portfolio & Reel for current listings of Australian and NZ ad agency and production company leadership and key personnel.