Fresh off the plane today and straight into the Cannes inferno... thankfully the sun defied my weather app and beat down on the Croisette today, which was already awash with lanyards.
Aside from hearing the Kanye rumours building throughout the day, my first day at Cannes was interesting and illuminating.
The buzz of the Palais, the hum of the streets, the blending of the global creative community with the slightly bemused but resigned, sun-kissed faces of the rivera residents.
Alongside the prestigious awards and key meetings truly, and not so deep down, there is also Celebrity Merry-Go-Round that accompanies the Cannes Lions. They add that whiff of glamour that our industry still loves and feeds off, that brands still enjoy and that we all talk about long after we've emptied the sand from our shoes.
Aside from hearing the Kanye rumours building throughout the day (he’s a late and rather high profile addition to a session on Tuesday, apparently) my first day at Cannes was interesting and illuminating in a number of ways. Here are some curated nuggets:
1) There's a clear creative push toward shorter and shorter video, but Millward Brown tells us that there is life beyond 6 six seconds. You can still engage in long form if you captivate and inspire the audience.
2) Adobe told us about the new breed of creatives. They are powerful, learning-obsessed, and focus more on meaning than anything else.
3) Sarah Jessica Parker and the Cosmopolitan editor-in-chief came to chat and they were duller than dull. 90s nostalgia - and, as one colleague observed, if Twitter "destroys" SJP, as she suggested it might, her tombstone will surely read, "RIP SJP OMG LOL".
4) On the other hand, Spike Jonze was electric, advising brands to "be willing to get fired" for the sake of a good idea. Powerful stuff.
5) But the greatest inspiration of the day seems to be reserved for Solar Impulse, who came attired in flight suits and talked about their remarkable solar powered aeroplane. Sometimes it’s important to open our minds to ideas outside our usual sphere.
And so on to tomorrow, to see what more the Cannes experience will offer up to me. Continuing Jonze’s lead, Google’s "A Healthy Disregard for the Impossible" at the Grand Audi has caught my eye.
And as for Kanye, no one is sure quite what he will talk about, but I’m guessing it’s going to heavily feature the word "Kanye." The Merry-Go-Round takes yet another spin.