Will Cannes Lions be extinct?

The biggest advertising festival is about to end soon. Happy winners and disappointed creatives will fill the beach and have a last glass of rosé before going back home and trying to do some work that is good enough for next year. But does it make any sense to ask a jury to give away creative awards in the era of social media when the most popular pieces of communication are all over the internet anyway? Who could argue with millions of views, likes and shares?

I think social media popularity can be a double-edged sword. On one hand, it's good that the most obvious scams that were only published once, seen by nobody, and entered to the festival may be filtered out. If a judge hasn't seen the work before the festival, it's a bit suspicious. But, on the other hand, it's difficult to resist giving a metal to a campaign that is praised by people all over the world. So, shall we just publish the list of the most popular branded communication every year and stay home instead of flying to the Cote d'Azur? I don't think so.

I believe awards should go to those who create something original and inspiring. Something that has never been done before. I also believe that it should be the job of these creative festivals to showcase quality instead of popularity. Don't get me wrong, I am really happy to see that effectiveness has become more important recently, at the end of the day our industry has to sell stuff. But the blurring line between hype and creative quality worries me a bit.

Look at feature film festivals. They usually don't care how popular a film is. They try to judge on their own terms, filmmakers award filmmakers for what they think is outstanding in their profession. Box office numbers are released and studios are happy to make the business moving. But nobody needs film professionals to sit in a room and create an excel chart on popularity.

I hope that future creative festivals will surpise me with work I haven't seen. With amazing things that may not have won the online view fight with funny cats or stupid politicians, but push me to go to work inspired. I hope festivals will convince everyone working in advertising that originality, art and craft can be an effective way of building brands. Otherwise Cannes Lions could be extinct in the era of online pollution.