2016 will mark the 62nd year that ad agencies, media shops and marketers will gather for the International Festival of Creativity – and there have been quite a few changes over the years. We look back at some of the biggest shifts in the festival's history.
1983 – the launch of Film Lions
TV and cinema ads were merged to create the Film Lions, which celebrate the best of the moving image. It's since been expanded to include the online and out-of-home experiences.
1985 – home in Cannes
Having launched in Venice in 1954, the festival moved to Monte Carlo in 1955 and then to Cannes the following year. It subsequently alternated between Venice and Cannes for 28 years – before settling in the south of France for good.
1991 – more than just awards
The Gulf War had a major impact on the advertising and marketing industries, with many brands pulling their ads in fear of the unrest. This led to the beginning of seminars at the Cannes Lions, which aimed to give delegates business advice in the crisis.
1992 – a name change for a broader focus
The International Advertising Film Festival became known as the International Advertising Festival. The event was originally set up by a group of people working in cinema advertising after they needed more recognition than the Cannes Film Festival gave them.
However by the nineties, the festival organisers realised it had become greater than film. In the same year, the Press and Outdoor Lions were added to the awards categories.
1998 – 2002 – new categories for cyber, media and direct
The Cyber Lion celebrating digitally experienced creativity, Media Lion for the "context of creativity", and Direct Lion debuted in 1998, 1999 and 2002, respectively.
2004 – a new owner in Emap worth £50m
The publishing house that owns Broadcast and FHM magazines acquired the festival for £52.2 million cash from WJB Chiltern Trust Company.
2005 – 2009 – a flurry of new categories
The festival continued to grow as it added radio work to the mix, and the Titanium Lion which celebrates "game-changers" in branded content, both in 2005. The Promo, Design and PR categories launched in 2006, 2008 and 2009, respectively.
2011 – embracing creativity with a name change
The Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival became the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. As the event had embraced new categories and moved beyond advertising, the name change showed that it was about much more than just adland.
2013 – record Grand Prix awards for one campaign
"Dumb ways to die" by McCann Australia for Metro Trains picked up five Grand Prix awards, the most ever for a single piece of work. The public service campaign aimed to encourage people to be safer around the trains network – and it took home Grands Prix in the PR, Direct, Radio, Integrated and Film categories.
2015 – The launch of the Glass Lion and Creative Data Lion
With the advertising landscape continuing to change, the festival last year introduced a category for data – and the Glass Lion for work that tackled gender stereotypes, at the suggestion of Sheryl Sandberg, chief operating officer at Facebook.
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