Cyber Lions

Every year, I’m always excited to see the Cyber Lion winners. It’s the time to see what others have been doing and to be blown away by new use of technology or just really clever thinking.

Last year certainly didn’t disappoint with Dove and Nike+ as grand prix winner.

So what about this year?

Uniqlo, for its Uniqlock was one of the well-deserved winner of the grand prix of the category as well as the Titanium award.

As well as the live banner for an online magazine and the immersive ARG for nine inch nails that was featured on this blog a few months ago.

But let’s go back to Uniqlock, as I’ve been in love with it since I first came accross it last year.

It’s the most original piece of communication of last year, for all media and accross all categories. This is just the best piece of advertising our industry, worldwide, has created in 2007-08. Period. (HBO voyeur does come a close second). Uniqlock is not just well integrated. But also so clever, artistic, beautiful, fun, charming…

It has been accessed 100 million times, in 212 countries. Proving that top creativity can reach a global audience online. And they plan to invade your mobile phones this year…

I love everything about it. The product integration is so cleverly done, the fact that the clock is updated constantly to reflect the seasons, with the dancers’ clothes changing, from t-shirts to cashmere. The details in the execution, the characters, the moves, the music…

How they used the web to launch it as well is incredibly clever. Caveat: please note here that this success wouldn’t have been achieved if the advertising in itself wasn’t so good. But their strategy to spread the content on blog AND give them the tools to do it was very clever indeed.

This is definitely the one I wish I had done. Watch the summary on the Cannes website.

Now, I have to confess I was slightly underwhelmed with the rest of the winners. Especially in the gold category. It feels a bit like style has been priviledged over substance.

I feel we privledged tricks, bells and whistles and specially technology, over ideas. A big budget definitely helped, hence the Coke Zero winning silver.

Some of them feel quite small. They are all clever. But they feel small. Small little things that will be quickly forgotten.

I feel like the winners are big favourites among us, advertisers, but not among consumers.

There are exceptions of course, like the BK freak out and the Samsung, how we met, the Domino build your own or simpsonize me.

Is it the end of the viral video, Ronaldhinio touch of gold style?

Where is the next Nike + application?

Do these categories actually make any sense at all I wonder?

And why is it mainly biased young geeks, and mainly male? Everyone is online nowadays, is there not a clever campaign out there that is a bit more mature?

Now, I’m not saying the jury did a bad job. They did pick the best out of the lot. Only we, as an industry, have rested on our laurels this year. We haven’t pushed the media further. But, we can do much, much better than that.

So let’s get cracking. Starting now, I’m concocting a plan.

Lastly, for all the fuss created by R/GA this year, the debate about old vs new cretive, etc. they only managed to get a silver. Disappointing?