Pete Khoury (chief creative officer at TBWA\Hunt\Lascaris and chairperson of the Creative Circle South Africa) and Nathan Reddy (chief creative officer and founder at Grid Worldwide), opine that with the rise of technology and digital platforms - comes a distinct shift in the industry in terms of what judging panels are looking for, and what’s being awarded, but creativity remains the constant ‘north star’.
With the Cannes Lions done and dusted, and everyone back to creating magic for the next big campaign, both Khoury and Reddy speak on South Africa’s wins following the global creative awards.
TBWA\Hunt\Lascaris walked away with three of the countries eight Cannes Lions. Khoury and Reddy anticipate that the TBWA\South Africa collective will continue on their winning streak at the Loeries later this year following a good showing at the D&AD Awards where Grid Worldwide won a Wood Pencil – Typography, for their MTN campaign, Brighter Sans, and TBWA\Hunt\Lascaris won a Graphite Pencil – Digital Marketing as well as a Yellow Pencil – Branded Content and Entertainment, for Joburg Ballet’s Breaking Ballet campaign.
Both creative leaders believe that agencies need to be clear on how creativity is measured and on where one draws the line between creativity and appropriation.
Reddy says the best form of storytelling, happens when creatives take stock of what is affecting the world and not shy away from it when marketing brands, products and services, as it immediately plays in a space of popular interests that captivates and engages. ‘To be able to tell these stories in the best possible manner, we must be fearless in our approach, we must be bold, brave and to a certain degree ruffle some feathers. It is important to stand out’.
Today’s brands need to stand for something or they become obsolete. Particularly in a world mired with fake news, consumers yearn for authentic storytelling which resonates with their lived experiences and inspires a better tomorrow. When Grid Worldwide created the #HopeJoanna campaign the objective was to evoke a sense of nostalgia, reminisce and foresight, which would reignite ‘hope’ as a form of resilience.
#HopeJoanna demonstrates the highs and lows of our country, reminding the nation of where we come from. It tells South Africans and the world that ‘we’ve been here before: we have enjoyed our democratic rights to vote, we have seen giants fall, but if we have hope we have everything’.
South Africa’s timeline is the story of this campaign, and craft is the magic that packages
all elements together to create a seamless flow of content. Real people footage was used and dance was used to narrate the story. In short, when a person shares a joke, the audience waits for the punchline. The teller must keep listeners engaged; if this joke is authentic it will be well-received. There is nothing new about the story itself, nor any gimmicks used, but the secret lies in the creativity of craft and curation.
Amplifying the notion of craft and curation, Khoury says, culture inspires stories that are told across a myriad of platforms to drive results while making a meaningful change. In curating content from culture, creatives at TBWA\Hunt\Lascaris identify triggers, which are interpreted in real time, to determine the course of action in order for brands to respond and be relevant.
The course of action can be a tweet, a PR stunt, the beginning of a campaign, or the development of a new product. A case in point being Joburg Ballet, who has recorded an all-time high in ticket sales, since the inception of the Breaking Ballet social media campaign.
An ongoing series of bite-size ballets inspired by the biggest stories online, Breaking Ballet is produced in the form of short films, which are seeded straight back into trending conversations on social media. From identifying the trigger and briefing the dancers, to producing the film and seeding it back into the conversation takes 3 to 5 days.
Releasing the films at the speed of culture for them to be picked up and shared, ensures that the stories are still highly relevant and topical when the films are launched, and appeals to a younger, more diverse audience. Removing perceptions that ballet is a stale, old-fashioned dance form, and presenting it as a viable form of entertainment.
Khoury and Reddy agree that the collective strength of the TBWA\ Group lies in the collaborative nature, which embraces culture as the engine of 21st-century business - where everything is linked, and everyone brings invaluable expertise. This interconnectedness, coupled with a disruptive mindset which taps into popular culture and social issues, serves the Group well when creating campaigns for brands, services and products which are new to the market, as well as for established brands that organically innovate to keep up with the demands of culture.
It is often asked how South African creatives continually do exceptionally well in global awards relative to the local industry’s size and in the current economic climate. Clearly, when the creative industry dares to play in culture, it increases its influence on people, and this is why the disruptive mandate of TBWA\ South Africa continues to win the hearts of consumers and the approval of judging panelists.
Ultimately the onus is on creatives having to find their personal inspiration within culture for their creative ideas to meet the business imperative of their clients and go on to win prestigious awards.
![#CannesLions2019: Pete Khoury's SA Cannes expectations [WATCH]](https://biz-file.com/c/1906/502236-120x120.jpg?4)
