To the surprise of no one, Nike’s “Write the Future,” a cinematic tour de force from Wieden + Kennedy Amsterdam and director Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, won the Grand Prix in the Film category at Cannes.
It may surprise some to know how close a call it was, though. There was, according to jury chair Tony Granger, global chief creative officer at Y&R, “a lot of deliberation and re-voting” among film jurors around two top contenders for the big prize–“Write the Future” and “After Hours Athlete,” a gorgeous dark horse from agency Droga5 for Puma.
Granger said he asked jurors to “watch the ads and vote from the heart,” and in the end, the Nike spot “connected more emotionally.” The world cup spectacular features soccer royalty in a frenetically paced look at the ultimate what-if scenarios, with fates revolving around a blocked pass or a lightning strike.
“The most difficult brief that comes across a creative’s desk is to create a global film that connects locally,” said Granger of the winning entry.
Of over 3,300 entries, there were 14 Gold Lions awarded. Here are some highlights from the Gold list.
Droga5’s “After Hours Athlete” came this close to winning another Grand Prix for the agency, which has earned the top honor in three categories for its Jay-Z “Decoded” campaign.
Wieden Amsterdam also won a Gold Lion for “Entrance,” another big production number and the cornerstone spot in a new global campaign for Heineken.