Cannes, France: It was a simple, funny idea, simply and skillfully executed, but ‘Poem’ from Palmer Jarvis ddb and Avion Films represented a bold approach to selling shampoo, and for its efforts, brought home the most coveted bauble in adland – the Gold Lion at the International Advertising Festival in Cannes .

While Canadians rejoiced at the win – the first Gold Lion for a Canadian tv spot in over 10 years – they also reflected on the state of the Canadian industry and the hard and soft benefits of attending the yearly festival, held June 21-26 under abnormally blue South of France skies. Among these: taking in the sights and the personalities, making connections, and perhaps most importantly, watching an endless and endlessly diverse array of spots submitted by commercial makers from Argentina to Uzbekistan (see Editorial, p. 6).

The spots which won acclaim ranged from the visually and aurally arresting ‘Surfer’ for Guinness, which delivers maximum effects impact with its white stallions emerging from a roiling sea, to the comedy of extreme minimalism as featured in ‘Slackers’ for Kellogg’s Raisin Bran Crunch. This spot has the titular characters rising from disheveled beds in their house of sloth to eat breakfast and then promptly return to slumber, capped with the message: Breakfast is Back.

Jurors tastes leaned at times to the wacky and weird, with Silver Lions going to ‘Captain Pecker,’ the (yes, live action) singing spokespenis for a Sydney-based gay radio station, and, inexplicably, to ‘The Ogress,’ a description-defying opus out of the Better Way agency in Thailand.

‘Poem,’ directed by Avion Films’ Henry Holtzman emerged from the festivities with one of the 22 film Gold Lions awarded – the sole Canadian entry to be honored so. The dop on the spot was Peter Hartmann and sound design was done by Vancouver’s Wave Productions.

The spot is set in a men’s self-help group and features a humorous, dubiously romantic tribute by a poetically challenged man to his wife on the occasion of the couple’s anniversary.

The spot distinguished itself from a field of 4,757 film entries, which were culled by 20 jurors over the first few days of the festival to form a short list of about 500 commercials. Two Canadian spots survived to the short-list stage: ‘Poem’ and bbdo’s ‘Wild West’ for FedEx, directed by Ricardo de Carvalho out of Velocity Afrika and Radke Films.

Palmer Jarvis ddb also won a campaign Silver in the Press and Poster section for two Playland ads and a Silver for its self-promo ad ‘Crash.’ There were 7,332 Press and Poster ads entered. The Grand Prix winner, created out of TBWA London, was ‘Nipple’ for Sony PlayStation, a copy-free image featuring only esoteric visual cues to its relevance.

On the final night of the festival, Avion’s Michael Schwartz and Lever Ponds director of hair care Rob Guenette took to the stage at the film awards gala and struck a handsome pose before the cameras to accept the Gold Lion for ‘Poem.’ While at last year’s Cannes show Canadians netted seven film Lions – two Silver and five Bronze – this year’s film award represents the first Gold Lion win in over a decade.

This year’s Canadian contingent of about 60 souls was expanded from the previous year, with the country’s industry types spurred on in 1999 by the first Canadian Cannes Committee. The committee, fronted by Cineplex Odeon’s Marci Davies and Paul Bolte, together with Gee Jeffery & Partners’ Alan Gee, Young & Rubicam group creative director Leif Nielsen and Radke director Steve Gordon organized two events for Canadians at the show and generally boosted the Canadian cause in Cannes.

Canadian attendees were uniformly effusive about the show and the value of attending.

Schwartz says attendance at Cannes is de rigeur in an increasingly global ad market and that the show is a perfect opportunity to build new and existing relationships.

‘You have to be there if you want to play the game seriously,’ he says. ‘It’s important from the standpoint of seeing the work that’s being done around the world as well as for the opportunity to talk to your counterparts and build relationships with other countries.’

There is also, says Schwartz, the opportunity for real communication with fellow Canadians – something that can be difficult given the pace of daily life back home.

As many were, John Farquhar, creative director at y&r, Toronto, was attending the Cannes show for the first time. y&r captured a Silver Lion last year for its ‘Actor’ spot for AGF Mutual Funds.

‘For me and for the agency I wanted to know what the show looked like. And you realize that here you see the best and the worst.’ His message to those at home? ‘It’s inspirational, it’s fascinating and it’s achievable. I think we as a country could do well. The quality of work that comes out of Canada could do well. We’re in the ball park.’

New Directors Showcase

Radke director Eddy Chu won last year’s Saatchi & Saatchi/ Playback First Cut Award for new directors, for which he received a trip to Cannes. He also earned a place on the Saatchi & Saatchi New Directors’ Showcase at the festival. The Showcase, held June 23, featured famed commercial and feature director and enigmatic personality Tony Kaye emerging from a coffin for a quick musical interlude followed by a reel of the brightest up-and-coming talent from around the world.

Chu’s entry, ‘Interrogation’ for Panasonic, was greeted very warmly by the tough Cannes crowd and Chu says the experience was an inspiration for him. His take-away from the show: ‘It’s possible. As a kid from Toronto, here I can see it’s possible to be the best in the world.’ Chu points to Cannes as an important venue for international recognition and credibility. ‘I think advertising is global. If Canada wants to be global, we must be in attendance.’

Chu also cites the increasingly difficult lot of Canadian directorial talent. While Chu has directed some critically acclaimed work in Toronto, he says a growing portion of his work is coming from international sources; after the close of the festival Chu was heading off to Tuscany for a spot job. ‘u.s. companies have embraced me now. Why doesn’t Canada embrace its own talent? Other countries do it. Canada should embrace Canada.’

Those who did miss the show this year and are vowing to make the trip next year will still need to bone up on their conversational French: rumors that the show would be moving soon to another venue – South Africa was mentioned – are apparently just that.

Record attendance

Festival ceo Romain Hatchuel is quick in dismissing any notions of relocating the show. Hatchuel says this year’s show was the most successful yet (notwithstanding technical snafus which plagued the Press and Poster Awards. The organizers were lightning quick, however, to make amends in the most suitable way given the proclivities of the crowd: free Dom Perignon was offered to fuel post-show festivities for the rest of the night) and that the composition of the Cannes crowd had changed and expanded, with more senior managers and directors of companies, media people and other industry representatives attending along with the agency crowd. The 1999 event was attended by more than 7,500 people from 75 countries.

While not sitting in the dark surrounded by the sounds of the jeering whistles, approving applause or deafening silence which accompanied the spot screenings, visitors could sit in on a number of conferences, seminars and lunches held over the week-long festival.

Leo Burnett also launched a new compendium of significant advertising with The 100 Best TV Commercials…and Why They Worked, penned by ad columnist Bernice Kanner.