{"id":7032960,"date":"2026-08-08T02:43:50","date_gmt":"2026-08-08T02:43:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/peraltafinancing.com\/uncategorized\/in-defense-of-cannes-lions-2026\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T02:43:50","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T02:43:50","slug":"in-defense-of-cannes-lions-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=7032960","title":{"rendered":"In Defense of Cannes Lions 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div dir=\"auto\">\n<p>The Ad Stack is a light and satirical look at AI, Advertising, and Marketing. <\/p>\n<p>Panel images were updated to present more cohesion among imagery, per a reader suggestion. <\/p>\n<p><span>in certain bitter corners of the internet, to be <\/span><em>grossed out<\/em><span> by Cannes. We at The Ad Stack will have none of it. The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity is a serious institution doing serious work, and this year we\u2019d like to defend it properly; point by point, leaving nothing out.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>One more thing. \u201cAI is everywhere.\u201d Feel free to insert this wherever you like. <\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>It is. It always has been. <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<div class=\"captioned-image-container\">\n<figure><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!mSZz!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F30e0763d-7db3-423d-a9a4-af10a47e0136_2560x1706.jpeg\" data-component-name=\"Image2ToDOM\" class=\"image-link image2 is-viewable-img can-restack\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"image2-inset\"><picture><source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!mSZz!,w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F30e0763d-7db3-423d-a9a4-af10a47e0136_2560x1706.jpeg 424w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!mSZz!,w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F30e0763d-7db3-423d-a9a4-af10a47e0136_2560x1706.jpeg 848w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!mSZz!,w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F30e0763d-7db3-423d-a9a4-af10a47e0136_2560x1706.jpeg 1272w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!mSZz!,w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F30e0763d-7db3-423d-a9a4-af10a47e0136_2560x1706.jpeg 1456w\" sizes=\"100vw\"\/><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!mSZz!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F30e0763d-7db3-423d-a9a4-af10a47e0136_2560x1706.jpeg\" width=\"1456\" height=\"970\" data-attrs=\"{&quot;src&quot;:&quot;https:\/\/substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com\/public\/images\/30e0763d-7db3-423d-a9a4-af10a47e0136_2560x1706.jpeg&quot;,&quot;srcNoWatermark&quot;:null,&quot;fullscreen&quot;:null,&quot;imageSize&quot;:null,&quot;height&quot;:970,&quot;width&quot;:1456,&quot;resizeWidth&quot;:null,&quot;bytes&quot;:null,&quot;alt&quot;:&quot;SRMG Labs win Gold and Silver at Cannes Lions - Campaign ...&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:null,&quot;type&quot;:null,&quot;href&quot;:null,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;topImage&quot;:false,&quot;internalRedirect&quot;:null,&quot;isProcessing&quot;:false,&quot;align&quot;:null,&quot;offset&quot;:false}\" alt=\"SRMG Labs win Gold and Silver at Cannes Lions - Campaign ...\" title=\"SRMG Labs win Gold and Silver at Cannes Lions - Campaign ...\" srcset=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!mSZz!,w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F30e0763d-7db3-423d-a9a4-af10a47e0136_2560x1706.jpeg 424w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!mSZz!,w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F30e0763d-7db3-423d-a9a4-af10a47e0136_2560x1706.jpeg 848w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!mSZz!,w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F30e0763d-7db3-423d-a9a4-af10a47e0136_2560x1706.jpeg 1272w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!mSZz!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F30e0763d-7db3-423d-a9a4-af10a47e0136_2560x1706.jpeg 1456w\" sizes=\"auto, 100vw\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"sizing-normal\"\/><\/picture><\/div>\n<p><\/a><figcaption class=\"image-caption\">source: Campaign Middle East<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p><span>The week exists to celebrate the most awarded creative on the planet, which is why it remains so easy for attendees to name a single Grand Prix winner that wasn&#8217;t their own. Try it at the next offsite. Ask the most senior person in the room to name one 2026 Film Lion. Watch them reach, with great dignity, for their ros\u00e9. The work is so central to Cannes that one top comment in the r\/advertising thread about the festival, sitting at 277 upvotes, simply read: <\/span><em>&#8220;Cannes is honestly dead and super cringe at this point. Entries are down like 25% in a single year for good reason.&#8221;<\/em><span> Down twenty-five percent! Proof, surely, that only the <\/span><em>truest<\/em><span> believers now enter. The chaff has self-selected out. What remains is pure.<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>Ah, the panels. Panels, panels, panels.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<div class=\"captioned-image-container\">\n<figure><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!5-3r!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fbfc03193-5c26-494b-bcf2-7e3243c2e681_1024x576.jpeg\" data-component-name=\"Image2ToDOM\" class=\"image-link image2 is-viewable-img can-restack\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"image2-inset\"><picture><source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!5-3r!,w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fbfc03193-5c26-494b-bcf2-7e3243c2e681_1024x576.jpeg 424w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!5-3r!,w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fbfc03193-5c26-494b-bcf2-7e3243c2e681_1024x576.jpeg 848w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!5-3r!,w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fbfc03193-5c26-494b-bcf2-7e3243c2e681_1024x576.jpeg 1272w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!5-3r!,w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fbfc03193-5c26-494b-bcf2-7e3243c2e681_1024x576.jpeg 1456w\" sizes=\"100vw\"\/><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!5-3r!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fbfc03193-5c26-494b-bcf2-7e3243c2e681_1024x576.jpeg\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" data-attrs=\"{&quot;src&quot;:&quot;https:\/\/substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com\/public\/images\/bfc03193-5c26-494b-bcf2-7e3243c2e681_1024x576.jpeg&quot;,&quot;srcNoWatermark&quot;:null,&quot;fullscreen&quot;:null,&quot;imageSize&quot;:null,&quot;height&quot;:576,&quot;width&quot;:1024,&quot;resizeWidth&quot;:null,&quot;bytes&quot;:94260,&quot;alt&quot;:null,&quot;title&quot;:null,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;image\/jpeg&quot;,&quot;href&quot;:null,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;topImage&quot;:false,&quot;internalRedirect&quot;:&quot;https:\/\/theadstacker.com\/i\/204036021?img=https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fbfc03193-5c26-494b-bcf2-7e3243c2e681_1024x576.jpeg&quot;,&quot;isProcessing&quot;:false,&quot;align&quot;:null,&quot;offset&quot;:false}\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!5-3r!,w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fbfc03193-5c26-494b-bcf2-7e3243c2e681_1024x576.jpeg 424w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!5-3r!,w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fbfc03193-5c26-494b-bcf2-7e3243c2e681_1024x576.jpeg 848w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!5-3r!,w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fbfc03193-5c26-494b-bcf2-7e3243c2e681_1024x576.jpeg 1272w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!5-3r!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fbfc03193-5c26-494b-bcf2-7e3243c2e681_1024x576.jpeg 1456w\" sizes=\"auto, 100vw\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"sizing-normal\"\/><\/picture><\/div>\n<p><\/a><figcaption class=\"image-caption\">source: AdWeek<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"captioned-image-container\">\n<figure><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!65y6!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F47e532fe-f4b8-4a95-ad10-18a67ec7da32_1000x666.webp\" data-component-name=\"Image2ToDOM\" class=\"image-link image2 is-viewable-img can-restack\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"image2-inset\"><picture><source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!65y6!,w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F47e532fe-f4b8-4a95-ad10-18a67ec7da32_1000x666.webp 424w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!65y6!,w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F47e532fe-f4b8-4a95-ad10-18a67ec7da32_1000x666.webp 848w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!65y6!,w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F47e532fe-f4b8-4a95-ad10-18a67ec7da32_1000x666.webp 1272w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!65y6!,w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F47e532fe-f4b8-4a95-ad10-18a67ec7da32_1000x666.webp 1456w\" sizes=\"100vw\"\/><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!65y6!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F47e532fe-f4b8-4a95-ad10-18a67ec7da32_1000x666.webp\" width=\"1000\" height=\"666\" data-attrs=\"{&quot;src&quot;:&quot;https:\/\/substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com\/public\/images\/47e532fe-f4b8-4a95-ad10-18a67ec7da32_1000x666.webp&quot;,&quot;srcNoWatermark&quot;:null,&quot;fullscreen&quot;:null,&quot;imageSize&quot;:null,&quot;height&quot;:666,&quot;width&quot;:1000,&quot;resizeWidth&quot;:null,&quot;bytes&quot;:60344,&quot;alt&quot;:null,&quot;title&quot;:null,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;image\/webp&quot;,&quot;href&quot;:null,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;topImage&quot;:false,&quot;internalRedirect&quot;:&quot;https:\/\/theadstacker.com\/i\/204036021?img=https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F47e532fe-f4b8-4a95-ad10-18a67ec7da32_1000x666.webp&quot;,&quot;isProcessing&quot;:false,&quot;align&quot;:null,&quot;offset&quot;:false}\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!65y6!,w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F47e532fe-f4b8-4a95-ad10-18a67ec7da32_1000x666.webp 424w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!65y6!,w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F47e532fe-f4b8-4a95-ad10-18a67ec7da32_1000x666.webp 848w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!65y6!,w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F47e532fe-f4b8-4a95-ad10-18a67ec7da32_1000x666.webp 1272w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!65y6!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F47e532fe-f4b8-4a95-ad10-18a67ec7da32_1000x666.webp 1456w\" sizes=\"auto, 100vw\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"sizing-normal\"\/><\/picture><\/div>\n<p><\/a><figcaption class=\"image-caption\">source: Getty Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p><span>Where else would a marketing leader learn that AI is important? Where else would one top up a depleted reserve of expert takes for the LinkedAI-In feed? You cannot simply <\/span><em>know<\/em><span> that AI is changing everything. You must hear it confirmed, from a beach, by a person wearing linen, into a microphone, at 11 a.m., beside a person from a different holding company who is about to say the identical thing on the next panel over. As one attendee on Reddit memorably summarized the programming: <\/span><em>\u201c\u2019I\u2019ll go to YOUR panel on the future of A.I. if you go to MY panel on the future of A.I.\u2019\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<p>We did wonder, briefly, where all the panel-talkers will go once the tents come down. Then we remembered. They\u2019ll go to LinkedIn. They were always going to LinkedIn.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>Critics call it a \u201cyacht party.\u201d <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<div class=\"captioned-image-container\">\n<figure><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!Y21T!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fda475bf6-2f09-438c-af41-90e10f51fd5a_1600x1068.jpeg\" data-component-name=\"Image2ToDOM\" class=\"image-link image2 is-viewable-img can-restack\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"image2-inset\"><picture><source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!Y21T!,w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fda475bf6-2f09-438c-af41-90e10f51fd5a_1600x1068.jpeg 424w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!Y21T!,w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fda475bf6-2f09-438c-af41-90e10f51fd5a_1600x1068.jpeg 848w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!Y21T!,w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fda475bf6-2f09-438c-af41-90e10f51fd5a_1600x1068.jpeg 1272w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!Y21T!,w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fda475bf6-2f09-438c-af41-90e10f51fd5a_1600x1068.jpeg 1456w\" sizes=\"100vw\"\/><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!Y21T!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fda475bf6-2f09-438c-af41-90e10f51fd5a_1600x1068.jpeg\" width=\"1456\" height=\"972\" data-attrs=\"{&quot;src&quot;:&quot;https:\/\/substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com\/public\/images\/da475bf6-2f09-438c-af41-90e10f51fd5a_1600x1068.jpeg&quot;,&quot;srcNoWatermark&quot;:null,&quot;fullscreen&quot;:null,&quot;imageSize&quot;:null,&quot;height&quot;:972,&quot;width&quot;:1456,&quot;resizeWidth&quot;:null,&quot;bytes&quot;:null,&quot;alt&quot;:null,&quot;title&quot;:null,&quot;type&quot;:null,&quot;href&quot;:null,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;topImage&quot;:false,&quot;internalRedirect&quot;:null,&quot;isProcessing&quot;:false,&quot;align&quot;:null,&quot;offset&quot;:false}\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!Y21T!,w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fda475bf6-2f09-438c-af41-90e10f51fd5a_1600x1068.jpeg 424w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!Y21T!,w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fda475bf6-2f09-438c-af41-90e10f51fd5a_1600x1068.jpeg 848w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!Y21T!,w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fda475bf6-2f09-438c-af41-90e10f51fd5a_1600x1068.jpeg 1272w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!Y21T!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fda475bf6-2f09-438c-af41-90e10f51fd5a_1600x1068.jpeg 1456w\" sizes=\"auto, 100vw\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"sizing-normal\"\/><\/picture><\/div>\n<p><\/a><figcaption class=\"image-caption\">Source: Bespoke Yacht Charter<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p><span>We call it irreplaceable face-time. After all, how else would we know which competitor\u2019s award-winning creative to <\/span><em>borrow<\/em><span> for this year\u2019s kitty-litter campaign? You can\u2019t reverse-engineer a Lion from a case-study video alone. You have to be <\/span><em>there<\/em><span>. You have to feel the craft. You have to stand near the people who made the thing you are about to make again, slightly worse, for a litter brand, in Q3.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>(A representative voice here is the user <\/span><strong>Dogwalker_123<\/strong><span>, who we are confident would have delivered a devastating defense of Cannes networking, something about \u201csynergy at sea level,\u201d except their flight, hotel, and job were all cancelled the week prior, in that order, by the same email.)<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><strong>\u201cThe Art of Influence?\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<div class=\"captioned-image-container\">\n<figure><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!aIrV!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F4a71a300-372d-4e19-8c76-cd395f43e154_1920x1072.png\" data-component-name=\"Image2ToDOM\" class=\"image-link image2 is-viewable-img can-restack\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"image2-inset\"><picture><source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!aIrV!,w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F4a71a300-372d-4e19-8c76-cd395f43e154_1920x1072.png 424w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!aIrV!,w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F4a71a300-372d-4e19-8c76-cd395f43e154_1920x1072.png 848w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!aIrV!,w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F4a71a300-372d-4e19-8c76-cd395f43e154_1920x1072.png 1272w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!aIrV!,w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F4a71a300-372d-4e19-8c76-cd395f43e154_1920x1072.png 1456w\" sizes=\"100vw\"\/><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!aIrV!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F4a71a300-372d-4e19-8c76-cd395f43e154_1920x1072.png\" width=\"1456\" height=\"813\" data-attrs=\"{&quot;src&quot;:&quot;https:\/\/substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com\/public\/images\/4a71a300-372d-4e19-8c76-cd395f43e154_1920x1072.png&quot;,&quot;srcNoWatermark&quot;:null,&quot;fullscreen&quot;:null,&quot;imageSize&quot;:null,&quot;height&quot;:813,&quot;width&quot;:1456,&quot;resizeWidth&quot;:null,&quot;bytes&quot;:null,&quot;alt&quot;:&quot;OMC at Cannes 2026&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:null,&quot;type&quot;:null,&quot;href&quot;:null,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;topImage&quot;:false,&quot;internalRedirect&quot;:null,&quot;isProcessing&quot;:false,&quot;align&quot;:null,&quot;offset&quot;:false}\" alt=\"OMC at Cannes 2026\" title=\"OMC at Cannes 2026\" srcset=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!aIrV!,w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F4a71a300-372d-4e19-8c76-cd395f43e154_1920x1072.png 424w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!aIrV!,w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F4a71a300-372d-4e19-8c76-cd395f43e154_1920x1072.png 848w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!aIrV!,w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F4a71a300-372d-4e19-8c76-cd395f43e154_1920x1072.png 1272w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!aIrV!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F4a71a300-372d-4e19-8c76-cd395f43e154_1920x1072.png 1456w\" sizes=\"auto, 100vw\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"sizing-normal\"\/><\/picture><\/div>\n<p><\/a><figcaption class=\"image-caption\">source: Omnicom<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p><span>Consider Omnicom, attending in 2026 for the first time as the <\/span><em>new<\/em><span> Omnicom, freshly merged with IPG, and organizing its entire festival presence around a single idea. The idea, and we want to be very clear that we did not invent this, is <\/span><strong>\u201cThe Art of Influence.\u201d<\/strong><span> This from a company that took its combined headcount from roughly 128,000 before the merger to about 105,000 after, on the back of 4,000-plus announced cuts and a stated target of $750m to $1bn in labor-cost savings, and which Adweek reported clawed back IPG\u2019s \u201cChristmas week\u201d and trimmed benefits on the way in.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>The Art of Influence. We\u2019re not going to do anything with that. We\u2019re just going to leave it there, on the Croisette, next to the branded fans, and let it influence you.<\/p>\n<p>And Omnicom is hardly the whole story. WPP shed some 7,000 roles (700 from Ogilvy alone). Dentsu cut around 3,400, about 8% of its people. IPG let go roughly 3,200 in nine months, before its new parent even got started. Forrester expects agency headcount to fall about 15% by the end of 2026. The Art of Influence, it turns out, is a team sport.<\/p>\n<p>How many did Omnicom send to Cannes? Reddit insists \u201chundreds.\u201d Omnicom, a firm with deep, proprietary expertise in influence, declined to influence us with a number, and we respect the discipline of that.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>Never more so than this year, which introduced fresh recognition for AI-assisted work. <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<div class=\"captioned-image-container\">\n<figure><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!7qv5!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0d1d151d-f71c-48c7-babf-940a95a22589_1024x606.jpeg\" data-component-name=\"Image2ToDOM\" class=\"image-link image2 is-viewable-img can-restack\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"image2-inset\"><picture><source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!7qv5!,w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0d1d151d-f71c-48c7-babf-940a95a22589_1024x606.jpeg 424w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!7qv5!,w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0d1d151d-f71c-48c7-babf-940a95a22589_1024x606.jpeg 848w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!7qv5!,w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0d1d151d-f71c-48c7-babf-940a95a22589_1024x606.jpeg 1272w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!7qv5!,w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0d1d151d-f71c-48c7-babf-940a95a22589_1024x606.jpeg 1456w\" sizes=\"100vw\"\/><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!7qv5!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0d1d151d-f71c-48c7-babf-940a95a22589_1024x606.jpeg\" width=\"1024\" height=\"606\" data-attrs=\"{&quot;src&quot;:&quot;https:\/\/substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com\/public\/images\/0d1d151d-f71c-48c7-babf-940a95a22589_1024x606.jpeg&quot;,&quot;srcNoWatermark&quot;:null,&quot;fullscreen&quot;:null,&quot;imageSize&quot;:null,&quot;height&quot;:606,&quot;width&quot;:1024,&quot;resizeWidth&quot;:null,&quot;bytes&quot;:null,&quot;alt&quot;:&quot;Cannes Lions 2026 Gallery Day 2: The Beach Is Hot But the Action Is Hotter&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:null,&quot;type&quot;:null,&quot;href&quot;:null,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;topImage&quot;:false,&quot;internalRedirect&quot;:null,&quot;isProcessing&quot;:false,&quot;align&quot;:null,&quot;offset&quot;:false}\" alt=\"Cannes Lions 2026 Gallery Day 2: The Beach Is Hot But the Action Is Hotter\" title=\"Cannes Lions 2026 Gallery Day 2: The Beach Is Hot But the Action Is Hotter\" srcset=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!7qv5!,w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0d1d151d-f71c-48c7-babf-940a95a22589_1024x606.jpeg 424w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!7qv5!,w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0d1d151d-f71c-48c7-babf-940a95a22589_1024x606.jpeg 848w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!7qv5!,w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0d1d151d-f71c-48c7-babf-940a95a22589_1024x606.jpeg 1272w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!7qv5!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0d1d151d-f71c-48c7-babf-940a95a22589_1024x606.jpeg 1456w\" sizes=\"auto, 100vw\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"sizing-normal\"\/><\/picture><\/div>\n<p><\/a><figcaption class=\"image-caption\">source: AdWeek<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p><span>Or, as the user <\/span><strong>mkiv808<\/strong><span> put it with real warmth: <\/span><em>\u201cThere\u2019s literally a category for AI slop now. AI \u2018Craft\u2019 lol. It stopped being about creativity a long time ago. It\u2019s now primarily a C suite yacht party circle jerk money grab.\u201d<\/em><span> You can feel the love.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The craft extends to the metrics, too. We\u2019re told by <\/span><strong>McGee_McMeowPants<\/strong><span> of having to gently correct a colleague who wished to claim a campaign \u201creached 100 million Australians,\u201d patiently explaining the difference between reaching Australians 100 million times and reaching 100 million Australians, given that there are only 28 million Australians. This is the kind of numerical rigor that wins Effectiveness Lions, and we will not hear it disparaged.<\/span><\/p>\n<p data-attrs=\"{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https:\/\/theadstacker.com\/p\/in-defense-of-cannes-lions-2026?utm_source=substack&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_content=share&amp;action=share&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Share&quot;,&quot;action&quot;:null,&quot;class&quot;:null}\" data-component-name=\"ButtonCreateButton\" class=\"button-wrapper\"><a href=\"https:\/\/theadstacker.com\/p\/in-defense-of-cannes-lions-2026?utm_source=substack&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_content=share&amp;action=share\" class=\"button primary\"><span>Share<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>The proof is everywhere. <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<div class=\"captioned-image-container\">\n<figure><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!Cc2X!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fdbbc712a-ae3e-486a-90fe-4af575f23a2c_1240x826.png\" data-component-name=\"Image2ToDOM\" class=\"image-link image2 is-viewable-img can-restack\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"image2-inset\"><picture><source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!Cc2X!,w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fdbbc712a-ae3e-486a-90fe-4af575f23a2c_1240x826.png 424w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!Cc2X!,w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fdbbc712a-ae3e-486a-90fe-4af575f23a2c_1240x826.png 848w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!Cc2X!,w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fdbbc712a-ae3e-486a-90fe-4af575f23a2c_1240x826.png 1272w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!Cc2X!,w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fdbbc712a-ae3e-486a-90fe-4af575f23a2c_1240x826.png 1456w\" sizes=\"100vw\"\/><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!Cc2X!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fdbbc712a-ae3e-486a-90fe-4af575f23a2c_1240x826.png\" width=\"1240\" height=\"826\" data-attrs=\"{&quot;src&quot;:&quot;https:\/\/substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com\/public\/images\/dbbc712a-ae3e-486a-90fe-4af575f23a2c_1240x826.png&quot;,&quot;srcNoWatermark&quot;:null,&quot;fullscreen&quot;:null,&quot;imageSize&quot;:null,&quot;height&quot;:826,&quot;width&quot;:1240,&quot;resizeWidth&quot;:null,&quot;bytes&quot;:null,&quot;alt&quot;:null,&quot;title&quot;:null,&quot;type&quot;:null,&quot;href&quot;:null,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;topImage&quot;:false,&quot;internalRedirect&quot;:null,&quot;isProcessing&quot;:false,&quot;align&quot;:null,&quot;offset&quot;:false}\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!Cc2X!,w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fdbbc712a-ae3e-486a-90fe-4af575f23a2c_1240x826.png 424w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!Cc2X!,w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fdbbc712a-ae3e-486a-90fe-4af575f23a2c_1240x826.png 848w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!Cc2X!,w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fdbbc712a-ae3e-486a-90fe-4af575f23a2c_1240x826.png 1272w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!Cc2X!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fdbbc712a-ae3e-486a-90fe-4af575f23a2c_1240x826.png 1456w\" sizes=\"auto, 100vw\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"sizing-normal\"\/><\/picture><\/div>\n<p><\/a><figcaption class=\"image-caption\">source: AdWeek<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p><span>Agency emails trumpeting \u201cour wins at Cannes\u201d are read with such enthusiasm that <\/span><strong>ShopToyLife<\/strong><span> reports deleting them <\/span><em>immediately<\/em><span>, a response so instant it can only be devotion. <\/span><strong>kebabmybob<\/strong><span> notes the festival \u201chasn\u2019t been about the creative awards in a very long time. It\u2019s an adtech conference,\u201d which is wonderful news, because adtech conferences are famously beloved and never described as soul-flattening. And <\/span><strong>OkPhase1545<\/strong><span> offered perhaps the highest compliment available in the English language: <\/span><em>\u201cCannes and Soho House are spiritually similar.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>A vigorous, sincere, entirely straight-faced defense of Cannes Lions 2026.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<div class=\"captioned-image-container\">\n<figure><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!mh9s!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F33cd886a-2944-4303-92a0-b4e00467c143_1024x722.jpeg\" data-component-name=\"Image2ToDOM\" class=\"image-link image2 is-viewable-img can-restack\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"image2-inset\"><picture><source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!mh9s!,w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F33cd886a-2944-4303-92a0-b4e00467c143_1024x722.jpeg 424w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!mh9s!,w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F33cd886a-2944-4303-92a0-b4e00467c143_1024x722.jpeg 848w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!mh9s!,w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F33cd886a-2944-4303-92a0-b4e00467c143_1024x722.jpeg 1272w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!mh9s!,w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F33cd886a-2944-4303-92a0-b4e00467c143_1024x722.jpeg 1456w\" sizes=\"100vw\"\/><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!mh9s!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F33cd886a-2944-4303-92a0-b4e00467c143_1024x722.jpeg\" width=\"1024\" height=\"722\" data-attrs=\"{&quot;src&quot;:&quot;https:\/\/substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com\/public\/images\/33cd886a-2944-4303-92a0-b4e00467c143_1024x722.jpeg&quot;,&quot;srcNoWatermark&quot;:null,&quot;fullscreen&quot;:null,&quot;imageSize&quot;:null,&quot;height&quot;:722,&quot;width&quot;:1024,&quot;resizeWidth&quot;:null,&quot;bytes&quot;:null,&quot;alt&quot;:&quot;Cannes Lions Archives - YesICannes&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:null,&quot;type&quot;:null,&quot;href&quot;:null,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;topImage&quot;:false,&quot;internalRedirect&quot;:null,&quot;isProcessing&quot;:false,&quot;align&quot;:null,&quot;offset&quot;:false}\" alt=\"Cannes Lions Archives - YesICannes\" title=\"Cannes Lions Archives - YesICannes\" srcset=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!mh9s!,w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F33cd886a-2944-4303-92a0-b4e00467c143_1024x722.jpeg 424w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!mh9s!,w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F33cd886a-2944-4303-92a0-b4e00467c143_1024x722.jpeg 848w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!mh9s!,w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F33cd886a-2944-4303-92a0-b4e00467c143_1024x722.jpeg 1272w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!mh9s!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F33cd886a-2944-4303-92a0-b4e00467c143_1024x722.jpeg 1456w\" sizes=\"auto, 100vw\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"sizing-normal\"\/><\/picture><\/div>\n<p><\/a><figcaption class=\"image-caption\">source: yesicanes.com<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p><span>A festival <\/span><em>about the work<\/em><span>, fortified by <\/span><em>essential panels<\/em><span>, powered by <\/span><em>vital networking<\/em><span>, <\/span><em>committed to<\/em><span> by its largest holding company, in <\/span><em>celebration of craft<\/em><span>, and <\/span><em>more relevant than ever<\/em><span>.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>We rest our case. We rest it the way the industry has rested tens of thousands this cycle: regretfully, on LinkedIn, with a photo of the sunset.<\/p>\n<p>No one cares about the winners except the winners. Congratulations to the winners.<\/p>\n<p><em>The Ad Stack<\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong>A note on sourcing, because we manage reputations for a living and ought to manage our own:<\/strong><span> <\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\n<p>Quotes attributed to real Reddit handles (ShopToyLife, kebabmybob, mkiv808, McGee_McMeowPants, OkPhase1545, Cornwallis400) are drawn from the public r\/advertising thread \u201cAny One Else Grossed Out by Cannes This Year?\u201d and are reproduced as the (pseudonymous) commenters wrote them. <\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>Dogwalker_123 is a fictional character invented for satire; that quote is fabricated and so is the email. <\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>Omnicom\u2019s \u201cArt of Influence\u201d festival theme, the 4,000-plus announced cuts, the combined-headcount drop from roughly 128,000 to 105,000, the $750m to $1bn labor-cost target, and the benefits changes are from trade reporting (Omnicom, Campaign, PR Week, Adweek, The Drum, HR Grapevine). <\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p><span>Industry-wide figures: WPP ~7,000 (700 at Ogilvy), Dentsu ~3,400 (~8%), IPG ~3,200 over nine months, and Forrester\u2019s ~15% agency-headcount decline projected through end of 2026, are from Digiday, AdExchanger, Campaign, and Forrester. (We have deliberately <\/span><em>excluded<\/em><span> Challenger, Gray &amp; Christmas\u2019s \u201c150,000+ AI-cited cuts,\u201d which is economy-wide, not advertising.) <\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>The \u201chundreds at Cannes\u201d headcount is an unverified claim from a Reddit thread and is presented as such. The \u201centries down ~25%\u201d figure matches multiple trade outlets.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Ad Stack is a light and satirical look at AI, Advertising, and Marketing. Panel images were updated to present more cohesion among imagery, per a reader suggestion. in certain bitter corners of the internet, to be grossed out by Cannes. We at The Ad Stack will have none of it. The Cannes Lions International [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7032961,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[22080,14431,16418],"dealstore":[],"offerexpiration":[],"class_list":["post-7032960","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-cannes","tag-defense","tag-lions"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>In Defense of Cannes Lions 2026 - Som2ny Network<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=7032960\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"In Defense of Cannes Lions 2026 - Som2ny Network\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The Ad Stack is a light and satirical look at AI, Advertising, and Marketing. Panel images were updated to present more cohesion among imagery, per a reader suggestion. in certain bitter corners of the internet, to be grossed out by Cannes. We at The Ad Stack will have none of it. The Cannes Lions International [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=7032960\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Som2ny Network\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-08-08T02:43:50+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/https3A2F2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com2Fpublic2Fimages2F47e532fe-f4b8-4a95-ad10-18a67.jpeg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1000\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"666\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"6 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=7032960#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=7032960\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/person\/b85e3c3dc0e1daea076524dc8810c371\"},\"headline\":\"In Defense of Cannes Lions 2026\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-08-08T02:43:50+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=7032960\"},\"wordCount\":1229,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=7032960#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/https3A2F2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com2Fpublic2Fimages2F47e532fe-f4b8-4a95-ad10-18a67.jpeg\",\"keywords\":[\"Cannes\",\"Defense\",\"Lions\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=7032960#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=7032960\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=7032960\",\"name\":\"In Defense of Cannes Lions 2026 - Som2ny Network\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=7032960#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=7032960#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/https3A2F2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com2Fpublic2Fimages2F47e532fe-f4b8-4a95-ad10-18a67.jpeg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-08-08T02:43:50+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=7032960#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=7032960\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=7032960#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/https3A2F2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com2Fpublic2Fimages2F47e532fe-f4b8-4a95-ad10-18a67.jpeg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/https3A2F2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com2Fpublic2Fimages2F47e532fe-f4b8-4a95-ad10-18a67.jpeg\",\"width\":1000,\"height\":666},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=7032960#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?bp_activities=1\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"In Defense of Cannes Lions 2026\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/\",\"name\":\"Som2ny Network\",\"description\":\"Daily Deals\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Som2ny Network\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/4a0953c4-logo-300x86-1.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/4a0953c4-logo-300x86-1.png\",\"width\":300,\"height\":86,\"caption\":\"Som2ny Network\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/person\/b85e3c3dc0e1daea076524dc8810c371\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/729ae85bf62b9917e93538db2f2688ca?s=96&r=g&default=https%3A%2F%2Ffivemor.com%2Fwp-content%2Fplugins%2Fbuddypress-first-letter-avatar%2Fimages%2Fdefault%2F96%2Flatin_a.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/729ae85bf62b9917e93538db2f2688ca?s=96&r=g&default=https%3A%2F%2Ffivemor.com%2Fwp-content%2Fplugins%2Fbuddypress-first-letter-avatar%2Fimages%2Fdefault%2F96%2Flatin_a.png\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"In Defense of Cannes Lions 2026 - Som2ny Network","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=7032960","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"In Defense of Cannes Lions 2026 - Som2ny Network","og_description":"The Ad Stack is a light and satirical look at AI, Advertising, and Marketing. Panel images were updated to present more cohesion among imagery, per a reader suggestion. in certain bitter corners of the internet, to be grossed out by Cannes. We at The Ad Stack will have none of it. The Cannes Lions International [&hellip;]","og_url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=7032960","og_site_name":"Som2ny Network","article_published_time":"2026-08-08T02:43:50+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1000,"height":666,"url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/https3A2F2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com2Fpublic2Fimages2F47e532fe-f4b8-4a95-ad10-18a67.jpeg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"6 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=7032960#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=7032960"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/person\/b85e3c3dc0e1daea076524dc8810c371"},"headline":"In Defense of Cannes Lions 2026","datePublished":"2026-08-08T02:43:50+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=7032960"},"wordCount":1229,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=7032960#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/https3A2F2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com2Fpublic2Fimages2F47e532fe-f4b8-4a95-ad10-18a67.jpeg","keywords":["Cannes","Defense","Lions"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=7032960#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=7032960","url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=7032960","name":"In Defense of Cannes Lions 2026 - Som2ny Network","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=7032960#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=7032960#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/https3A2F2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com2Fpublic2Fimages2F47e532fe-f4b8-4a95-ad10-18a67.jpeg","datePublished":"2026-08-08T02:43:50+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=7032960#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=7032960"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=7032960#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/https3A2F2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com2Fpublic2Fimages2F47e532fe-f4b8-4a95-ad10-18a67.jpeg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/https3A2F2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com2Fpublic2Fimages2F47e532fe-f4b8-4a95-ad10-18a67.jpeg","width":1000,"height":666},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=7032960#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?bp_activities=1"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"In Defense of Cannes Lions 2026"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/","name":"Som2ny Network","description":"Daily Deals","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#organization","name":"Som2ny Network","url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/4a0953c4-logo-300x86-1.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/4a0953c4-logo-300x86-1.png","width":300,"height":86,"caption":"Som2ny Network"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/person\/b85e3c3dc0e1daea076524dc8810c371","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/729ae85bf62b9917e93538db2f2688ca?s=96&r=g&default=https%3A%2F%2Ffivemor.com%2Fwp-content%2Fplugins%2Fbuddypress-first-letter-avatar%2Fimages%2Fdefault%2F96%2Flatin_a.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/729ae85bf62b9917e93538db2f2688ca?s=96&r=g&default=https%3A%2F%2Ffivemor.com%2Fwp-content%2Fplugins%2Fbuddypress-first-letter-avatar%2Fimages%2Fdefault%2F96%2Flatin_a.png","caption":"admin"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/fivemor.com"],"url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7032960","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=7032960"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7032960\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/7032961"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=7032960"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=7032960"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=7032960"},{"taxonomy":"dealstore","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fdealstore&post=7032960"},{"taxonomy":"offerexpiration","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fofferexpiration&post=7032960"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}