Simon Vicars’ Cannes Diary #1

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Individual PR photo.jpgSimon Vicars (left), creative group head, Colenso BBDO, Auckland is representing NZ on the Cannes Radio Lions jury. Vicars, along with most of the other New Zealand and Australian judges, reports exclusively for CB.

Going through Heathrow the Customs lady asked if I was heading to Cannes for work or a holiday. I said, “Work” and then instantly felt guilty.

But today, we actually worked.

Radio has no pre-judging. That means, how can I put this diplomatically, there were some mingers.

Heaps of mingers, actually.

For a large part of the day we were baffled and bored, and we were people with an obligation to listen.

I can’t imagine the public – who are free to change channels or throw their stereo in a lake – would have stuck around for many of the payoffs.

The next part of the blog is meant to go, ‘but amongst the grey haze of mediocrity there was work that shone bright like a diamond’ or something like that.

And there was, but jeez it was scarce.

Cannes is such an inspiring place, but not on day one.