Every year, the advertising industry descend upon the south of France to meet up in Cannes over a glass of rosé to celebrate the power of creativity. So I thought it was about time that I caught up with the CEO of Lions, Simon Cook, to discuss why creativity matters. The conversation ranges from how can you make the case for creativity in business while budgets are strained, to what you can expect this year from Cannes Lions. Timestamps 00:00 - Start01:37 - Origins of Cannes Lions03:38 - The scale of Cannes Lions05:19 - Creative marketer of the year07:16 - State of the Nation research09:30 - Friction between agencies and clients12:47 - Jon’s two Cannes Lions with Lucozade15:15 - The return of humour at Cannes17:46 - Trends and themes for Cannes Lions 202418:39 - Will we see an AI category at Cannes?20:01 - Big names at Cannes Lions 202421:14 - Cannes for creative effectiveness, or just celebrating the craft?23:56 - Cannes embracing creators25:27 - Jon’s pitch for a low budget category27:57 - Advice on how to win a Lion30:20 - How Simon Cook got the CEO job at Cannes Lions32:40 - Challenges Simon has faced as CEO35:09 - Dealing with criticism of Cannes Lions37:02 - The Cannes Lions legacy38:06 - Simon’s proudest moment