Thanks to our Creative Council, where Creative Leaders from around the world meet to inspire and direct the work that we do, MSQ’s creative mission is simple: Make Something Change.
You can Make Something Change in many ways. But however you aim to do it, it means using creativity to have a genuine impact and leave the world in a better place. Not a cool activation that draws attention to an issue for a moment, but then is forgotten about. Ideas that create effective, real and long-term differences.
Cannes Lions is the ultimate calling card for that very mission. And there were plenty of pieces that inspired us in the way they made change happen.
So our Cannes round-up is going to be something a little different. We’ve asked our creatives in Cannes to single out the work that they think best fits that brief. That may be a Grand Prix winner, but often it’s something a little less heralded too.
If you too want to make something change, enjoy the choices below…
Pinatex, Dole Sunshine Company & Ananas Anam
“Dole changed their waste pineapple leaves into a vegan leather product that Nike now use in a range of sneakers. That’s not advertising, that’s changing business operations using a waste by-product and the by-product of that is amazing advertising – mindblowing.”
Reuben Webb, Chief Creative Officer
Real Tone, Google
“This powerful campaign makes us [and hopefully big tech companies] think, highlighting something that so obviously should’ve been done back when smartphone cameras were first invented. It simply made technology more inclusive and more fit for a world I want to live in.”
Emma McKernan, Creative
Project Understood, Google
“This project invited people with speech differences (specifically Down’s syndrome) teaching Google AI to understand better so they can use the tech. That data can change the whole world of voice assistants. Simple but powerful story about inclusion (and a creative effectiveness Gold).”
Kit Altin, Chief Strategy Officer
Handle With I Don’t Care, Strahl
“We’re all trying to make customers make a change. This simple direct mail made 100% of recipients make the change to Polycarbonate – an unbreakable glass-like alternative. They simply mailed a glass to restaurants and bars – with no packaging whatsoever. Just a label that said: ‘Handle with I don’t care’. All the glasses survived the trip – all recipients made an order.”
Alex Webb, Executive Creative Director
Hacking the Cannes Lions Archive, LoveTheWorkMore.com
“I love that this got awarded, not just because of it’s boldness in being entered when it’s a bit of a fuck you to Cannes, but also because of what it represents. Caleb Femi spoke at the festival about how the most senior people in the industry attend Cannes, but the junior creatives – the ones that do the work and are the next wave of changemakers – often aren’t. By providing access in this way, LoveTheWorkMore.com is going to create change through creativity like no other.”
Annalise Valentino, Creative
Sherwin Williams, Speaking in Colour
“It was the first year for the Creative B2B Category, and the winners made something change alright. The Grand Prix for Sherwin Williams changed the way architects specified colour for coatings with the AI App speaking in colour. Try it, I just asked for blue whale blue and tarantula black and it nailed it.”
Reuben Webb, Chief Creative Officer
Diia, Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine
“This is a Ukrainian entry but a pre-war piece of transformational creativity. There was a problem with bureaucracy and corruption when it came to government functions, such as getting a driving licence, passport or registering a business. So, one app has merged this complex landscape into one easy to use interface. Ukraine is now the first country to legislate electronic passports as being equivalent to paper documents, which has made a positive change for millions of Ukrainians.”
Alex Webb, Executive Creative Director
Plastic Fishing Tournament, Corona
“Although plastic pollution is a terrifying issue, this campaign attacked it in a very fun AND effective way. I may be a dreamer, but I truly believe we could ingrain this new sport into society across the globe as a long-term solution to saving our poor seas. Move over, Wimbledon.”
Emma McKernan, Creative
The Unfiltered History Tour, Vice World News
“I love the ambition of this project, both in terms of the boldness of the idea and how well it was executed. It encourages people to ask important, uncomfortable questions, aligning perfectly with what Vice World News sets out to do.”
Matt Williams, Head of Content
Stuck in the 80s, Guarana Antartica
“This campaign changed the law in Brazil to ensure women’s sports prizes were not stuck where men’s were in the 80s, but equal to men’s today. How’s that for make something change? But why didn’t it win the Grand Prix? Because, according to the jury, it didn’t create something that delivered change with permanent utility, like Nike’s Grand Prix winning app NikeSync, that helps women work with their menstrual cycle during training. The bar for change is high!”
Reuben Webb, Chief Creative Officer
