Cannes Lions Festival - Day 2

Today was the official start of the Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity! It's hard to comprehend that we have only been here two days when it feels like we have been here for two weeks!

I woke up bright & early to attend a talk with the Global Vice President of Marketing at UGG & the Creative and Inclusion Editor at Adweek titled, "From Iconic Footwear Brand to Global Lifestyle Brand." I found the talk inspiring because UGG focuses on sustainability, which is so important in today's world. I remember getting my first pair of UGGs in middle school, and I still have them today, which is the definition of a sustainable brand; products that last. In the world of fast fashion, it is so important to have brands like UGG make products that last for years.

A few quotes that stood out to me were:

1. "Brands have to be involved in sustainability because the world is involved in sustainability."

2. "Customers want to feel seen & heard in a way that feels authentic"

Next, I went to a creator talk at TikTok with speakers Robert Mayhew & Benji Park. They talked about how the new Gen Z is Gen T (Generation TikTok).

Then, I went to a very emotional and moving conversation about the war in Ukraine titled "Creativity Under Bombs". The president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, made an appearance, which was an unforgettable experience. We were also able to hear from creatives who worked at advertising agencies before the war began. Their stories about escaping Ukraine were so emotional and at times hard to hear. One man told the

story of how he escaped from Ukraine with his children, and Russian soldiers had guns to his children's heads, but they still managed to escape. The men and women of Ukraine are so strong, and I cannot fathom the pain they must feel. Going through that trauma and getting on a stage to tell thousands of people at the festival is something I cannot commend them enough for. Although they have been through immense trauma, they were able to make an amazing campaign titled "Be Brave Like Ukraine". They had absolutely no budget but still managed to have their campaign shared throughout the world and even ended up in many notable places like Times Square in New York City.

It's hard to make a smooth transition from that topic, but after that talk, I went to the Vogue x Snapchat Gallery, where I stumbled upon David Dobrick, who has over 7.1 Billion views on his YouTube channel. He was very nice and let me take a quick selfie.

After that, I met up with my entire group from ASU to attend a talk hosted by Adult Swim, Warner Bothers, and Ricky & Morty. The panel included Dan Harman & Michael Ouweleen.

A few quotes that stood out to me were:

1. "You don't need to be young to create."

2. "Partnerships should take the brand somewhere new and different."

3. "Consumers don't want to feel like they are being marketed too."

I finished the night at the Amazon Port where they hosted a Soirée with a live band!