The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity continued to shine along the Croisette as it rolled out a dazzling second wave of awards on Tuesday, recognizing the most groundbreaking work across its Entertainment and Craft Tracks.
From soulful stop-motion storytelling to captioning that stirs the heart, this year’s winning work didn’t just push creative boundaries—it redrew them entirely.
Two Grands Prix for “Caption with Intention”
Taking a powerful and purposeful leap forward in accessibility design, FCB Chicago’s “Caption with Intention” won two Grands Prix—in both Design and Digital Craft. Developed with the Deaf and Hard of Hearing community, the project reimagines closed captioning as a dynamic design system infused with emotion, tone, and impact. It’s not just a technical innovation—it’s a call for inclusive creativity at the highest level.
“This is a design system that brings emotion and depth and context into the caption experience,” said Design Jury President Jessica Walsh. “It will transform the viewing experience for anyone using captions.”
Hyundai’s “Night Fishing” Hooks Entertainment Grand Prix
South Korea scored its first-ever Entertainment Grand Prix with INNOCEAN Seoul’s genre-defying “Night Fishing” for Hyundai’s IONIQ line. Shot entirely with car cameras, the short blends sci-fi, tension, and sleek automotive branding to reach a skeptical millennial and Gen Z audience—without ever feeling like a car ad.
WPP/Hogarth’s David Rolfe called it “deeply humanistic, riveting, and bizarre—in the best way possible.”
Neymar Jr. and Haaland Score for Gaming and Sport
In the Entertainment Lions for Gaming, Brazil’s GUT São Paulo turned a livestreamed Call of Duty session into a real-time sales event with “Call of Discounts” for Mercado Livre—earning them the Grand Prix.
In the Entertainment Lions for Sport, DAVID New York’s “Haaland Payback Time” for Clash of Clans made football’s golden boy a playable character—and let his haters destroy his village. Jury president Jimmy Smith called it “effortless, genius fan engagement.”
Bad Bunny Brings It Home
Puerto Rico’s DDB Latina brought home the Grand Prix in Entertainment for Music with “Tracking Bad Bunny”, a culture-shifting album launch for Rimas Music. It wasn’t just a release—it was a movement. One that centered Puerto Rican pride and defied a racist comment from a major organization.
“A Grand Prix should not only represent creative excellence—it should carry a message,” said music jury president Seiya Matsumiya.
Soulful Puppets and Bold Books
In Film Craft, Australia took the Grand Prix for “Better on a Better Network” by Bear Meets Eagle on Fire. With 26 handcrafted spots showcasing regional Aussie towns via stop-motion puppets and quirky storytelling, it felt, in the words of jury president Ali Ali, like “a warm, slow-cooked meal” in a year of AI flash and fast content.
Meanwhile, Brazil’s Artplan São Paulo won the Industry Craft Grand Prix for “Nigrum Corpus”, a stunning, deeply crafted book merging AI, illustration, and medical imagery to confront racism in healthcare. A Jury favorite, the piece was praised as “a remarkable testament to creative excellence across multiple facets.”
More to Come
Cannes Lions will continue announcing winners nightly through June 20, with more categories still to be revealed. For now, the bar for 2025 has been set sky-high—with bold storytelling, socially-conscious craft, and global perspectives leading the charge.
For all Cannes Lions coverage, check back here—or pour a glass of rosé and follow along @TheReel360.
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