Cannes Contenders: MullenLowe Shares Its 10 Heaviest Hitters

The MullenLowe Group has been flexing its various creative muscle groups all over the world this past year, from the playful and innovative to the beautiful and honest. With the first real-life Cannes Lions for three years looming ahead, we turned to creative leaders from across the network to pick out their favourite work by their colleagues in other offices, so you know what to look out for during the awards.

Ilana Enfeld, global creative director at MullenLowe: “I love this. It’s just the right side of outrageous. Making plant-based food feel cool, not worthy, somehow makes you think it’s going to taste better. It’s a brilliant example of how to make big noise on a small brand.”

“Every time I see this idea I smile. And then I feel hungry.”

Idea Creation: LOLA MullenLowe

Production: Landia Madrid

PR: LOLA MullenLowe

Media Placement: LOLA MullenLowe

Post-Production: Landia Madrid

Alex Okada, global creative director at MullenLowe: “Words matter. Some can distort your self-perception and damage your confidence. And this is the root of the powerful ‘Girls Define Girl’. By inviting girls to create a new meaning for a word that in Spanish was originally left without meaning (if you look up girl in the dictionary it tells you to look at ‘boy”) they’ve shown the real meaning of being a girl in an inspiring way. The willingness to fight, dream and change things. Words do matter and in the world we live in, they should evolve for the better.”

Idea Creation: MullenLowe SSP3

Post-Production: Austria Films Bogota

Juan David Pardo, executive creative director at MullenLowe SSP3 Colombia: “Sweet Tooth is a great idea. It has even more merit as it was done when it was more challenging than ever to be creative, fun, intelligent and drive organic engagement. Connecting with people in a natural way, that's what good campaigns achieve.”

Idea Creation: Mediahub Global

Media Placement: Mediahub Global

Diego Muñoz, executive creative director at MullenLowe SSP3 Colombia: “TAG The Game: This is a great way to use the problem as an advantage. It's so good how the brand adapted its message with the most common codes of gaming in a positive way, the brand isn't saying don't play video games, instead is using it to create its ‘own game’ inviting kids to go outside. Love the way that was launched, if the idea needed to be at an event this was it. A really good way to refresh the brand communication and keep its purpose clear.” 

Idea Creation: LOLA MullenLowe

Production: Happy Fish London

PR: Golin New York

Media Placement: Mindshare London

Post-Production: Happy Fish London

Nicky Bullard, chief creative officer at MullenLowe Group UK: “I find the Dove Real Soaps work just wonderful.  A brand that is willing to present its product as imperfect, in recognition and celebration of the ‘imperfections’ that make women the amazing and beautiful individuals that they are, is quite breathtaking.”

Idea Creation: MullenLowe SSP3

Production: Austria Films Bogota

PR: Babel Group Bogota

Post-Production: Austria Films Bogota

Tomas Ostiglia, executive creative director at LOLA MullenLowe, Spain: “The difference between being alive or not. This is what you feel at the beginning of this amazing documentary about human resilience. This highly emotional content portrays different heroes and their wonderful dishes. Celebrating all those cooking communities and their ability to survive the terrible lockdown using beautiful imagery and real-life stories. It makes us feel so close, even if we are far away.”

Idea Creation: Martin Agency

Production: Easy Mondays New York

Tomas Ostiglia, executive creative director, LOLA MullenLowe, Spain: “This is an incredible campaign with very high design standards that explores an uncommon angle in this particular sport. A campaign that’s out of the box, breaking the category norms and celebrating diversity. You fall immediately in love with the craft, which adds a dose of elegance to one of the toughest sports. A celebration around hockey in the middle of the Arizona desert. This is by far the most stylish campaign the NHL has ever seen. I say, GOLD.”

Idea Creation: MullenLowe US

Production: Loveboat LA/Satelite Audio São Paulo

Post-Production: Danilo Abraham LLC, São Paulo / Rock Paper Scissors, Santa Monica / Yeti Productions, Los Angeles / MPC, Culver City

Dave Weist, executive creative director at MullenLowe Boston: “If you smell good, good things happen, like in this case about 2 billion impressions from a crypto-crazed audience.  Smart and silly can peacefully coexist.” 

Tim Vaccarino,  executive creative director at MullenLowe Boston: “The first cryptocurrency scent with a dank musk. Hilarious. And what’s even funnier? This pushed up actual Dogecoin values by 19%.”

Idea Creation: Martin Agency

Production: Superjoy Richmond

Dave Weist, executive creative director at MullenLowe Boston: “This is such a cool way to hit on the notion of pleasure. An unrequited love, finally brought together by Magnum. Beautiful story and work.” 

Tim Vaccarino, executive creative director at MullenLowe Boston: “I love that they told a 700-year-old love story in the medium of that time. Also, the thought that using an oil painting as a form of outdoor activity is pretty genius.” 

Idea Creation: LOLA MullenLowe

Production: Landia Madrid

PR: LOLA MullenLowe

Media Placement: LOLA MullenLowe

Post-Production: Landia Madrid

Ricard Valero, executive creative director at MullenLowe New York: “In Iberoamerican countries, football is like a religion and Maradona is the closest thing to God. Recreating Maradona’s handwriting is not even about typography, It’s about emotion. It invites us to feel his charisma one last time and hold on to it. This is one of those ideas where design shines by becoming more imperfect, visceral, and passionate. Just like football.” 

Idea Creation: LOLA MullenLowe

Production: LOLA MullenLowe