What’s in a win? Behind the scenes of Cannes Lions 2024’s victors

A new video series, ‘The Winners Circle’ from The Drum and Toptal Marketing, uncovers the industry-leading processes and insights, and puts a spotlight on the talent driving their success.

Episode 1: Samsung's subversive success

Our first episode delves into Samsung’s clever ‘The Art of the Hack’ campaign from Cheil Madrid. The campaign, designed to bypass the high VAT on electronics in Spain, reimagined Samsung TVs as pieces of art to benefit from a lower tax rate.

Alejandro Di Trolio, executive creative director, Cheil Worldwide explains: “We realized that, if you buy a TV you're going to pay 21% VAT, but if you buy a piece of art, you only pay 10%.” This subversive insight not only saved customers money but also generated widespread social media buzz and press coverage.

The campaign's success was further highlighted by its physical presence at art fairs, blending commerce with creativity in a groundbreaking way.

The campaign says a lot about advertising’s evolution from producing a commercial to kickstarting a movement, Di Trolio explains, calling on the industry “to completely transform our mindset”, to achieve more. Watch now.

Episode 2: Mobilizing against gangs with Movistar

In this episode, Nino Goldberg, chief content officer, VMLY&R Latin America, discusses the impactful ‘This is Not a Game’ campaign for Movistar, which aimed to create a safe gaming environment for children. The campaign sought to educate families and parents on the real-world issue of gangs recruiting kids through online games. Its use of real gamers instead of actors added authenticity and effectiveness, making it a powerful tool for social change.

The campaign’s compelling storytelling helped it achieve over five million views in its first week. Goldberg explains that its change of energy, moving from light-hearted gaming to seriousness, helped drive its message home.

And his advice for young creatives looking for success? “Be true to yourself, and don’t be afraid of failure.” Watch now.

Episode 3: DoorDash's dynamic Super Bowl stunt

Watch now as Michael Bennett, managing partner, Lord Danger takes us through the high-energy and high-stakes 'ALL-THE-ADS' campaign for DoorDash, created in collaboration with Wieden+Kennedy.

The campaign’s unique twist involved a Super Bowl promo code that viewers had to decode to win every product featured in the commercials. Michael describes the approach which not only captivated Super Bowl audiences but also demonstrated the power of agile and creative problem-solving in the advertising process: “We moved from live action to full 3D...it gave the client and the agency so much more room to involve who they wanted and get approvals from the partners.”

The key to success, he believes, is being adaptable and flexible: “As long as you're open to change in the middle of the process and have a positive group of people on your team…that's really what helps get you across the finishing line.”

Episode 4: Drinking in Heineken's anniversary triumph

In our final episode, Dana Cohen Katz, head of strategy, Heineken and Vera Sidlova, global creative thought leadership director, Kantar, reveal the strategic and creative journey behind Heineken's 150th-anniversary campaign.

The multi-channel 'Whateverken' campaign, produced by Le Pub, tackled the challenge of making a brand anniversary relevant to consumers who don’t care about them. By focusing on consumer-centric storytelling and leveraging data-driven insights, the campaign achieved remarkable success across various media, making it one of the most effective TV ads of 2023.

Sidlova underlines that what made the campaign special was the fact that it “stood its own ground in any channel that it appeared.”

Meanwhile, Cohen Katz advises creatives to have the courage of their strategic convictions despite pushback along the way. “The number one thing is, believe in something backwards, and then be relentless in how you bring it to life,” she says.