CANNES, France—French telco Orange’s ad challenging gender bias in soccer and Sydney Opera House’s jubilant ode to creativity each won a Film Grand Prix at Cannes Lions.
Film Lions is one of the few categories at Cannes allowed to award two Grand Prix. This year’s top winners represented a cultural moment in women’s sports marketing and a pure celebration of human creativity.
Orange’s film, created by agency Marcel Paris, already won the Entertainment for Sport Grand Prix earlier this week. Launched three weeks before the 2023 Fifa Women’s World Cup, the ad began as a typical highlights reel of men’s soccer, before stripping away the visual effects to reveal it was the women’s game all along.
Its aim was to showcase the elite level of women’s sport and challenge the biases of those who believe it is not as good as the men’s. After it aired, 92% of the ad’s viewers said it changed their mind about women’s soccer.
“Sometimes the idea wins out over everything. It’s not a perfect film, the craft isn’t perfect. But it’s so good and it makes you feel so much,” said Film Lions jury president Tor Myhren, vice-president of marketing communications at Apple. “To see it is to love it, so this was a very easy decision.”
The Film Lions jury also gave a Grand Prix to Sydney Opera House’s “Play It Safe” by The Monkeys (part of Accenture Song) and directed by lauded commercial director Kim Gehrig. Myhren emphasized the craft of this film, which celebrated the Sydney Opera House’s 50th anniversary and starred actor and comedian Tim Minchin, The Australian Ballet, Sydney Philharmonia Choirs and many other dancers, artists and performers.
“It’s a celebration of the creative spirit and showed it in a way that’s never been shown. It’s a celebration of brave ideas and taking gigantic risks in the face of criticism, controversy and cultural norms,” Myhren said. “Ultimately, it’s a celebration of our industry as well.”
