Fatboy Slim and Rob Mayhew Back #CannesForAll Initiative with Digilearning, Brixton Finishing School & Lollipop

DJ and producer Fatboy Slim and comedian & TikTok influencer Rob Mayhew will be donating 1% of their Cannes Lions earnings to the #CannesForAll initiative, a collaboration between The Digilearning Foundation, Brixton Finishing School & Lollipop Mentoring, to bring talent from under-represented backgrounds to the Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity this June.

The #CannesForAll campaign, which launched in January 2023, aims to make the Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity a more inclusive place by supporting emerging, diverse talent on the ground, by calling on senior leaders in the creative industry to take action and pledge 1% or more of their 2023 Cannes Lions activation budgets to support emerging, diverse talent.

The Digilearning Foundation, Brixton Finishing School & Lollipop Mentoring will each bring four of their current programme participants or alumni to Cannes. Digilearning’s students will also be joined by an apprentice from the Marketing Academy Foundation charity which has a placement at Amazon. Our cohort will experience the Festival as a group with a full pass and week-long programme of events including speaking opportunities, traditional and reverse mentoring, learning and exclusive content creation for brands. Additionally, Google has also sponsored two Google Career Certificate graduates from its Digital Marketing and E-commerce course to join the cohort.

Commenting on his support, Norman Cook, AKA Fatboy Slim, who has worked with Digilearning and their founders Lisa Goodchild and Sarah Wilson since 2022 said: ““We need to see more young talent from all walks of life. Digilearning and projects like the #CannesForAll are a must. It’s great to see Digilearning spreading the love and teaming up with other non-profits and charities to create these types of career opportunities for everyone – it is the only way forward. Businesses, you are losing out on some of the best talent to walk the Earth, so get involved! As I have said before, money is replaceable, but culture and people’s lives aren’t, which is why I am proud to support Digilearning and #CannesForAll.”

Rob Mayhew, comedian and creative director, added: "Every year it gets harder for young people to break into the advertising industry. Creativity comes from all walks of life. If everyone in your agency looks and speaks like you, then your work will suffer. I am incredibly lucky that this will be my second year going to Cannes. I fully support Digilearning and projects like #CannesForAll that will bring young people to Cannes Lions this year to help inspire them and find their creative superpower."

Ally Owen, founder, Brixton Finishing School commented: “Cannes is an exclusive club for future leaders. It’s not enough for us to build an equitable highway into the industry - we need to create equitable opportunities to rise when you arrive. I’d like to thank those who have donated where it counts - to #CannesForAll - Accenture Song, AmazingIf, Channel Factory, Clear Channel, Creature London, Google, Kantar, Mail Metro Media, Major Players, Merlin Entertainments, Freewheel, The Social Element, TikTok, Teads, The Trade Desk, Trainline, Twitch, Video Week, Wavemaker, WPP, VaynerMedia, and of course, Cannes Lions themselves for our passes.”

Lollipop Mentoring founder Maria McDowell added: “Attending Cannes for the first time last year was a transformative experience. Cannes had always felt like an unattainable dream for someone like me. But it's time for that perception to change. I want to express my gratitude to all those who recognise the importance of change and to the incredible individual donors who have made it possible. Their support highlights the profound significance of representation and equity. Together, we can make a difference”.

For more information on how to get involved, visit the campaign's GoFundMe page here.