Source: © Creative Review UK Creative Review UK To compete globally, South Africa needs to tell better stories in a way that pushes standards or sets us apart says Carl Willoughby Chief Creative Officer, TBWA\Hunt Lascaris ?????and Creative Circle Chairman and Loeries Awards Board Member

It’s a red flag for us around the standard of our work and how we potentially might be drinking our own Kool-Aid.

If we continue to celebrate our wins locally only and don’t excel on key international platforms such as Cannes, we are in danger of stagnation.

South Africa’s creatives have always punched above our weight at Cannes; never in terms of volume, but we landed ideas that set us apart from a cultural context. And yet we seem to be telling the same sort of stories.

4 strong themes

Four strong themes emerged at this year’s Cannes:

1. A return to traditional craft techniques
   
2. Embracing constraints
   
3. Investing in robust research
   
4. The importance of simplicity

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Traditional craft techniques

Traditional techniques like illustration, stop-motion, and embroidery were instrumental in creating some winning campaigns.

Loewe’s Grand Prix-winning Loewe x Suna Fujita showcased the power of animation to connect with audiences.

The hand-crafted stop-motion film brought the natural world to life, which resulted in a 35% increase in revenue for the Spanish luxury fashion house’s festive season.

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Coffee shop chain Café Joyeux, which employs people with intellectual and learning disabilities, won a Silver Lion for “47”, in which stop-motion animation was used to tell the inspiring story of a boy with Down syndrome, fostering inclusivity and demonstrating animation’s ability to handle sensitive topics with empathy.

As Yannis Konstantinidis of animation studio Nomint noted, “Animation is universally relatable, and it can handle sensitive topics without being overbearing or triggering.” It also has an evolutionary advantage… “we are hardwired to trust it”.Investing in craft can also revitalise brands. The Gold Media Lion-winning If you’re into it, it’s in the V&A (the museum in London) successfully bridged the gap between heritage and contemporary culture by linking popular hobbies to museum exhibits.

Research

Another recurring theme was the importance of research.

As Alexander Schill of the Serviceplan Group stressed, understanding the core message is crucial before diving into the creative process. “Go really deep into what you want to tell before crafting the shit out of it.”

Cultural sensitivity

Cultural sensitivity was a key factor in successful campaigns.

The Great Indian Dunk immersed itself in Indian culture, earning a Gold Lion by respecting local traditions and connecting basketball with cricket.

As Kalpesh Patankar, jury president and chief creative officer at Leo Burnett observed “Cricket is like religion in India. So, the NBA went straight into the cultural fabric of the country.”

These examples underscore the value of understanding target audiences deeply to create truly impactful work.

Better ideas

What allowed South African agencies to punch through in the past at Cannes was the calibre and strength of the idea, because a lack of budget never held us back in the past.

The idea is good enough: It helps us rise above any challenge.

To do better on international platforms, we need to put better ideas on the table. South Africa has its own challenges — economic and political challenges like every other market — but nobody can hold you back when you have a good idea, and you do it justice.

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Creativity a business superpower tool

A theme that resonated strongly for me at Cannes was the cost of dull.

If we’re not delivering iconic work, we are doing more of the same.

At Cannes, more of the same doesn’t get you anywhere. Creativity is a business superpower tool.

Brands that do regular, dull, uninteresting work spend on average 7.3% more on media to get the same results and have the same impact as creatively driven work, or creative work that has a sense of emotion to it.

Value of creativity in business results

Another strong theme was the value of creativity in business results.

From a global point of view, brands like Coca-Cola, Unilever and ABInBev have posted incredible results, which is in large part owing to their embrace of creativity. There’s a strong correlation between winning work and the bottom line.

#Cannes2024: The new standard

Carl Willoughby  24 Jun 2024

What holds us back

We have become very process-driven in South Africa: we expect so many click-through results to fulfil a particular need, but we don’t explore doing it in the most distinctive way possible.

This is what holds us back. And results in more of the same type of work.

As South African filmmaker and craft director Zee Ntuli from Darling Films stated at this year’s Creative Circle Full Circle event, “South Africa is very good at producing film, but we’re very good at producing the same sort of film.”

To compete globally, we need to tell better stories in a way that moves standards forward or sets us apart. We cannot keep beating the same drum, hoping to yield different results.

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