Canada’s Cannes Lions Champions of 2023
Undeniably, it was an amazing year for Canadian creativity at Cannes this year. Not only were the shortlists plentiful, but across the various competing agencies, 56 Lions of various stature were taken home, including a Grand Prix for FCB Toronto. It all serves as affirmation to the fact that truly, when it comes to creativity, scrappy attitudes and original thinking can always go toe-to-toe with raw big budgets.
Ranging from adidas' 'Runner 321' campaign - which saw the number 321 get reserved for marathon runners with Down syndrome around the world - to BBDO's 'Missing Matoaka', Citizen Relations Canada's 17-foot stall 'Cheetle' statue in Cheadle, Alberta to a literally unburnable book from Rethink, the work is creative, inspirational, and most importantly, delightful to watch.
For your viewing pleasure, check out the list below:
FCB Toronto
adidas - Runner 321
Grand Prix Direct
Gold Lion PR
Silver Lion Health and Wellness
Silver Lion PR
Bronze Lion Brand Experience
Bronze Lion Social Influencer
Associate creative directors Sara Radovanovich and Sally Fung: "'Runner 321' is a campaign that is all about the power of representation. Chris Nikic is an incredible athlete, but we learned that even he had to overcome not seeing someone like himself represented in mainstream sports. So, success for us was ensuring that this community would finally see themselves represented and making 321 a number they could aspire to for generations to come. We’ve seen runners wearing 321 popping up all over the world already! We can’t wait to see how many more will sign up. It’s an honour for FCB Toronto to win its first ever Grand Prix on a campaign that’s creating such meaningful change."
Voilà - Trending 2 Table
Silver Lion Social Influencer
Executive creative director Rob Sturch, and group creative director Troy McGuinness: "Everyone’s heard of dalgona coffee, cloud bread, and feta pasta. After all, when a recipe goes viral on TikTok, everyone wants to try it. We loved this global communal experience around food, and wanted to help more people experience trending recipes by making it easy for them to shop the ingredients. Success for us meant driving trials of Voilà’s grocery delivery services. And by creating an algorithm that predicts food trends, and developing a seamless user experience that takes people from discovery of a recipe to dining on it, we did just that. Winning a Cannes Lion with Voilà feels great - it validates our approach to exploring the intersection of data, culture, and brand."
LOTTO MAX - Dream Bars
Silver Lion Creative Commerce
Associate creative directors Joseph Vernuccio and Cody Sabatine: "In our 'Dream Bars' campaign, we wanted to a give our target a taste of the millionaire life, turning items only millionaires can afford into delicious ice cream bars. In terms of what it meant to us, every year you hope that you’ll win one, but when you finally see that little medal under your work on the Cannes page, you can’t believe it. It’s something that follows you around for the rest of your career, like the ghost of Cannes past. And to win your first Lion for one of our biggest clients in a category that celebrates campaigns that create a business impact? That certainly validates the work you put into it!"
Bank of Montreal - BMO NXT LVL
Gold Lion Creative Commerce
Gold Lion Social and Influencer
Associate creative directors Caleb McMullen and Hussein Rumaithi: "Success for 'BMO NXT LVL' means a 200-year-old bank that dared to do something unexpected (open a branch on Twitch) is now rewarded with two Gold Lions - the first and second for any Canadian bank. It's important that BMO receive these accolades, not only for its bravery, but to demonstrate that any brand has the power to do something different and try something new. The success of trailblazers like BMO shows that the risk and the work is worth the reward. We hope that these wins will have a ripple effect in our industry, resulting in a renewed hunger for brave creative and innovative solutions."
Broken Heart Love Affair
Royal Ontario Museum - Immortal
Silver Lion Film Craft
Partner and CCO, Denise Rossetto: “Our team was so inspired by the incredible films at Cannes and the level of craft. Our Lion means a lot to us because we are so fortunate to have worked with our incredible production partners on this project, and a client with a belief in artistry. Our partners were not only shortlisted for other work in directing, editing and cinematography, they also won Lions! We have the best client, producer, and production partners in the world, and we love working together. That’s what the Lion represents for us… art and friendship.”
Citizen Relations Canada
PepsiCo - Cheetle in Cheadle
Silver Lion Outdoor
Bronze Lion Outdoor
CCO Josh Budd: "Winning two Lions for the 'Cheetle in Cheadle' was a historic moment for us - the first agency-led Lion(s) for Citizen, and the first Lion(s) for PepsiCo Canada! For those who were in France, you might have seen a mini version on the Croisette getting tons of attention - hundreds of people stopping, taking and posting photos - even getting its own delegate badge from the Cannes organisation. Proud that our work has brought Canada into the great legacy of Cheetos brand recognition at Cannes!"
BBDO Canada
Muskrat Magazine - Missing Matoaka
Gold Lion Brand Experience
Gold Lion Radio and Audio
Silver Lion Brand Experience
Silver Lion Digital Craft
Silver Lion Entertainment
Bronze Lion Radio and Audio
Bronze Lion Brand Experience
CCO Max Geraldo: "This year at Cannes, the global industry has seen what we at home already know – that Canada is a creative force to be reckoned with! The energy and positivity around Canadian agencies has been incredible, and we're so happy to see 'Missing Matoaka' receive recognition on the global stage.”
Dentsu Creative Canada
SkipTheDishes - Inflation Cookbook
Silver Lion Mobile
Bronze Lion Direct
Rethink
Kraft Heinz - Heinz Draw Ketchup
Gold Lion Creative Effectiveness
Heinz Ketchup - Heinz Ketchup Fraud
Gold Lion Outdoor
Silver Lion Outdoor
Bronze Lion Direct
Bronze Lion Print Publishing
Bronze Lion Industry Craft
Penguin Books Random House - The Unburnable Book
Silver Lion Print Publishing
Bronze Lion PR
Bronze Lion Entertainment
Ikea - Window Shopping
Silver Lion Outdoor
Bronze Lion Media
Decathlon Canada - Ability Signs
Gold Lion Media
TAXI
Native Women's Association of Canada - Change the Bill
Bronze Lion Print Publishing
CCO Graham Lang: “Don’t make work for award juries. You can make a case study for the jury, but the idea needs to connect and resonate with real people who live in real communities. The best ideas are designed for scale and meaningful impact. To me, success is when your work is famous outside of award shows first. '#ChangeTheBill' is a platform that has ignited the conversation of Indigenous representation on Canadian currency, has become an e-commerce gallery for underserved Indigenous artists and a lobbying tool for members of the Native Women’s Association of Canada. We’re proud of what we’ve started, and we’re certainly not finished.”
Angry Butterfly
Jane/Finch Community and Family Centre - Bill it to Bezos
Gold Lion Social Influencer
Silve Lion Commerce
ACD/art director Chenice Piercy: "We’re thrilled that ‘Bill It to Bezos’ was recognised at Cannes Lions. It's not just about accolades; it is about demonstrating that innovation and creativity have the power to generate waves of positive change. With our brave client’s trust, we raised awareness for an overlooked community and discovered untapped donation potential. As an agency, we’re proud to earn our first Lions for such a meaningful campaign!"
Cossette
SickKids Foundation - House of Legends
Silver Lion Creative Strategy
Executive creative director Anthony Atkinson: "This Lion represents years of creative strategy dedicated to a very beloved brand. Our most recent SickKids VS campaign is the conclusion to a six-year saga involving many people, and we’re grateful to be recognised for the brilliant work that has become the hallmark of this winning partnership."
Edelman Canada
Dove - #KeepTheGrey
Silver Lion Social Influencer
