The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity announced its 2025 program that highlights five key themes: innovation, insights and trends, creative excellence, talent & culture, and creative impact.
The five-day event, scheduled on June 16-20, in Cannes features over 100 sessions across multiple venues within The Palais, including the Lumière Theatre, Rotonde Stage, and Terrace.
Creator Economy Takes Center Stage
The 2025 program reflects the growing influence of creators in advertising, with the festival officially rebranding its “Social & Influencer Lions” as “Social & Creator Lions.”
Sessions explicitly focusing on creators include UTA’s “The New C-level: How Creator Entrepreneurism Is Reshaping Business,” SevenSix Agency’s “The Creator Economy in Focus: The 2025 Influencer Pricing Report,” and BBC Studios’ “Chicken Shops and Red Carpets: The Rise of Amelia Dimoldenberg.”
This shift aligns with industry initiatives like Billion Dollar Boy’s recently launched Creator Fund, which provides 20 independent creators with passes to attend the festival.
“Creators set trends, shape culture, and define what’s next for the advertising industry,” states Becky Owen of Billion Dollar Boy, whose organization will host “The Creator Era” event on June 18 to explore the creator economy’s future.
Global Brands and Agencies to Lead Discussions
The program features multiple tracks focused on creativity’s business impact, with major brands presenting distinctive case studies: Duolingo shares “The Tech Marketer’s Playbook for Building a Beloved Social-First Brand,” Kraft Heinz explores “Marketing That Happens: Real-Time Truths that Move Culture,” and AXE/Lynx presents “Who’s Laughing Now? AXE’s Strategic Journey to Reclaim Relevance.”
Daily “CMOs in the Spotlight” sessions feature executives from Mars, Amazon, Nestlé, McDonald’s, Philips, Kimberly-Clark, Singapore Tourism Board, Suncorp, Unilever, Heineken Brazil, and Renault addressing strategic marketing challenges.
Agency representation includes sessions from Saatchi & Saatchi’s “A 35-Year-Old Love Affair with Creators,” Wieden+Kennedy Mexico, Droga5 Tokyo, and Dark Kitchen Creatives’ “Independent and Bold: The New Age of Boutique Agencies.”
Innovation and Transformation Highlighted
Sessions exploring technological transformation include YouTube’s “What 20 Years of YouTube Reveals About Creativity’s Future,” LinkedIn and Dr. Marcus Collins on “How to Be Buyable in B2B: Unlocking a US$19tn Category,” Rebecca Rowntree’s “Get Sh*t Done Live: Where Humans and AI Collide,” and Monks’ presentation on “Transforming Creativity and Unlocking Brand Agility with AI-Powered Video.”
The program features daily “Future Gazers” panels with emerging companies, including Samsung, Narratory Capital, Creators Corp, Neuemotion, Cognitiv, Night Owls, Kyra, The Social Hub, and Adolescent Content, discussing industry trends. GroupM challenges convention with “‘How Humans Decide’ Beats ‘How Brands Grow.'”
Awards and Recognition
The festival maintains its focus on creative excellence with multiple awards shows throughout the week, culminating in the Friday Awards Show and Closing Party at Carlton Beach.
Daily “Bronze and Silver Winners Announcements” precede evening ceremonies, with specialized categories including Glass: The Lion for Change, Innovation Lions, Titanium Lions, and the newly prominent Creative Data Lions.
David Lubars, BBDO’s former Chief Creative Officer, will receive the prestigious Lion of St Mark, with a dedicated seminar scheduled for the final day of the festival.
The program includes specialized content streams covering Insights & Trends, Innovation Unwrapped, The Creativity Toolbox, Talent & Culture, and Creative Impact for attendees to navigate sessions aligned with their professional interests.
Read the full program here.
The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity announced its 2025 program that highlights five key themes: innovation, insights and trends, creative excellence, talent & culture, and creative impact.
The five-day event, scheduled on June 16-20, in Cannes features over 100 sessions across multiple venues within The Palais, including the Lumière Theatre, Rotonde Stage, and Terrace.
Creator Economy Takes Center Stage
The 2025 program reflects the growing influence of creators in advertising, with the festival officially rebranding its “Social & Influencer Lions” as “Social & Creator Lions.”
Sessions explicitly focusing on creators include UTA’s “The New C-level: How Creator Entrepreneurism Is Reshaping Business,” SevenSix Agency’s “The Creator Economy in Focus: The 2025 Influencer Pricing Report,” and BBC Studios’ “Chicken Shops and Red Carpets: The Rise of Amelia Dimoldenberg.”
This shift aligns with industry initiatives like Billion Dollar Boy’s recently launched Creator Fund, which provides 20 independent creators with passes to attend the festival.
“Creators set trends, shape culture, and define what’s next for the advertising industry,” states Becky Owen of Billion Dollar Boy, whose organization will host “The Creator Era” event on June 18 to explore the creator economy’s future.
Global Brands and Agencies to Lead Discussions
The program features multiple tracks focused on creativity’s business impact, with major brands presenting distinctive case studies: Duolingo shares “The Tech Marketer’s Playbook for Building a Beloved Social-First Brand,” Kraft Heinz explores “Marketing That Happens: Real-Time Truths that Move Culture,” and AXE/Lynx presents “Who’s Laughing Now? AXE’s Strategic Journey to Reclaim Relevance.”
Daily “CMOs in the Spotlight” sessions feature executives from Mars, Amazon, Nestlé, McDonald’s, Philips, Kimberly-Clark, Singapore Tourism Board, Suncorp, Unilever, Heineken Brazil, and Renault addressing strategic marketing challenges.
Agency representation includes sessions from Saatchi & Saatchi’s “A 35-Year-Old Love Affair with Creators,” Wieden+Kennedy Mexico, Droga5 Tokyo, and Dark Kitchen Creatives’ “Independent and Bold: The New Age of Boutique Agencies.”
Innovation and Transformation Highlighted
Sessions exploring technological transformation include YouTube’s “What 20 Years of YouTube Reveals About Creativity’s Future,” LinkedIn and Dr. Marcus Collins on “How to Be Buyable in B2B: Unlocking a US$19tn Category,” Rebecca Rowntree’s “Get Sh*t Done Live: Where Humans and AI Collide,” and Monks’ presentation on “Transforming Creativity and Unlocking Brand Agility with AI-Powered Video.”
The program features daily “Future Gazers” panels with emerging companies, including Samsung, Narratory Capital, Creators Corp, Neuemotion, Cognitiv, Night Owls, Kyra, The Social Hub, and Adolescent Content, discussing industry trends. GroupM challenges convention with “‘How Humans Decide’ Beats ‘How Brands Grow.'”
Awards and Recognition
The festival maintains its focus on creative excellence with multiple awards shows throughout the week, culminating in the Friday Awards Show and Closing Party at Carlton Beach.
Daily “Bronze and Silver Winners Announcements” precede evening ceremonies, with specialized categories including Glass: The Lion for Change, Innovation Lions, Titanium Lions, and the newly prominent Creative Data Lions.
David Lubars, BBDO’s former Chief Creative Officer, will receive the prestigious Lion of St Mark, with a dedicated seminar scheduled for the final day of the festival.
The program includes specialized content streams covering Insights & Trends, Innovation Unwrapped, The Creativity Toolbox, Talent & Culture, and Creative Impact for attendees to navigate sessions aligned with their professional interests.
Read the full program here.