The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity has announced its first 2025 Lions, in the categories of Health & Wellness, Outdoor, Pharma, Print & Publishing and Audio & Radio.
The United Nations Grand Prix for Good went to ‘The Best Place In The World To Have Herpes’, for New Zealand Herpes Foundation, FINCH, Sydney / Motion Sickness, Auckland / NZ Herpes Foundation, Auckland.
The second Grand Prix was awarded to ‘Olympic Games Opening Ceremony Paris 2024’, for Paris 2024, by Paname 24, Paris / AUDITOIRE, Paris / Double 2, Paris / OBO, Paris / Havas Paris / Havas Events Paris.
“It’s always an exciting moment when we see the results of our Juries’ hard work in establishing the global creative benchmark,” said Simon Cook, CEO, LIONS.
"We’re seeing work that not only pushes creative boundaries but also demonstrates the tangible impact creativity can have on business and society."
In the Pharma Lions, which celebrate creative communications for pharmaceutical clients and services with work that brings science and innovation to life, from 305 entries received, 9 Lions were awarded: 1 Gold, 3 Silver, 4 Bronze Lions. The Jury awarded the Grand Prix to ‘Make Love Last - Bedroom’, for Viatris, by Ogilvy, Shanghai. The work sees Viagra, a brand that supports four hours of lasting intimacy, collaborate with a renowned artist to explore the intimacy stories of couples.
In the Health & Wellness Lions, honouring creativity for personal well-being, from 1169 entries received, 33 Lions were awarded: 6 Gold, 11 Silver, 15 Bronze. The Grand Prix went to ‘Vaseline Verified’, for Unilever, by Ogilvy, Singapore, which saw Vaseline scientists take viral hacks to the lab to test them. The campaign officially verified (or debunked) hacks through science, with findings shared directly with creators.
The Lions Health and United Nations Grand Prix for Good went to ‘The Best Place In The World To Have Herpes’, for New Zealand Herpes Foundation, FINCH, Sydney / Motion Sickness, Auckland / NZ Herpes Foundation, Auckland. Featuring a first-of-its-kind ‘Herpes Destigmatisation Course’, a global ranking system underpinned by live data, and plenty of irreverent humour, this campaign took an unusual approach to reducing herpes stigma – framing it as the key to restoring New Zealand’s diminished sense of national pride.
The Audio & Radio Lions, celebrating creativity that is wired for sound, received 714 entries, and 21 Lions were awarded: 3 Gold, 8 Silver, 9 Bronze and the Grand Prix that went to ‘One Second Ads’, for Budweiser, by Africa Creative DDB, São Paulo. In an effort to connect even deeper with music fans, Budweiser created a series of ads just 1 second long, featuring only the first notes of the world’s most iconic songs. Fans were then challenged to guess the songs on social media.
In the Print & Publishing Lions, which honour creativity in circulation, with 769 entries received, 23 Lions were awarded: 4 Gold, 8 Silver, 10 Bronze. The Grand Prix went to ‘Price Packs’, for PENNY, by Serviceplan, Munich, which saw PENNY launch bold, price-focused packaging designed to leverage its reputation for affordability, focusing its packaging entirely on price.
From 2001 entries received for the Outdoor Lions, 57 Lions were awarded: 9 Gold, 19 Silver, 27 Bronze. There were two Grands Prix awarded within the Outdoor Lions this year. The first went to KitKat for the ‘Phone Break’ campaign – ‘Crowd’, ‘Public Transport’, ‘Street’, VML, Prague – signalling the Czech Republic’s first Grand Prix. The campaign recreated familiar public moments – commuters waiting, pedestrians scrolling, friends looking at screens instead of each other – and swapped the phones with KitKats, triggering the iconic line “Have a break, have a KitKat”.
Special Awards:
Healthcare Network of the Year
- FCB Health
- Real Chemistry
- Ogilvy Health
Healthcare Agency of the Year
- AREA 23, An IPG Health Company, New York, USA
- 21Grams
- Ogilvy Health
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