[photopress:ishhands.jpg,full,centered]

Bob Isherwood, World wide Creative Director of Saatchi & Saatchi, begins his tour.

One of the unique and coolest feature of the Cannes Lions festival is that you have the luminaries of advertising all in one place, in a weeks time. No where else can you sit and discuss the world of advertising with the best minds, while sipping a refreshment on the Carlton Hotel terrace. Brilliant!

Seriously, if they have made an impact on this business, they are here.

Yesterday we were lucky enough to tag along as Bob Isherwood toured the print and poster finalists with some of the Saatchi clients.

What did we glean? Well it all becomes very simple when you look for that great idea in an image. But not very easy.

Essentially, to be a successful ad, simple, clean and, most importantly, emotional connection with the viewer is the key.

And originality. Some of the images we viewed were recycled ideas from 10-20 years ago, but the new crop of jury members may not have that same historical perspective.

As we sometimes say when folks look to historical award books, “It’s an annual, not a manual”

Were you looking for a magic bullet or a phrase that would explain it all? Well, as with all great thoughts, the simplicity of the message is the key.

Cheers!
Damon Webster