Cannes Lions receives record-breaking entries this year

387 judges across all juries have already started assessment. The first results will be revealed on Day 1 of the 63rd International Festival of Creativity on June 18 at the Lions Health Awards Ceremony

BestMediaInfo Bureau | Mumbai | June 16, 2016

Cannes Lion has finally closed entries for the 63rd Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity 2016. This year, 43,101 entries have been submitted -- an increase of 7 per cent over last year.

Overall, there's been growth in 18 of the 24 Lions, with a huge increase in the Product Design Lions (up by 92 per cent). There have been notable increase in awards associated with the festival's three specialist streams: Lions Entertainment, Lions Innovation and Lions Health.

The Entertainment Lions (formerly Branded Content and Entertainment) grew by 32 per cent to 1,843, while the new Entertainment Lions for Music attracted 637 entries in their debut year.

The two awards linked to Lions Innovation have also grown. Launched last year, entries for the Creative Data Lions have risen by 16 per cent and there was a leap of 69 per cent in the Innovation Lions, echoing the continuing explosion of data and tech-led creativity.

Terry Savage, Lions Festivals Chairman, said, “We're seeing evidence that the role of start-ups in the branded communications ecosystem is key, with new businesses and their products not only buoying entries to these two Lions but driving deep into others as well.”

The Pharma Lions and the Health and Wellness Lions have again grown significantly (up by35 per cent and 42per cent, respectively) with a total number of 2,607 entries, a dramatic growth. Louise Benson, Festival Director of Lions Health, attributes it to the ethos and impact of the event.

Savage added, “By celebrating life-changing creativity, we're challenging the norms of a highly regulated industry and accelerating change. Such strong entry numbers are a powerful sign of growing creative confidence.”

Other trends included strong support for craft. The inaugural Digital Craft Lions received 1,150 entries, Film Craft is up by 5 per cent and the craft categories within other Lions have also surged this year.

Philip Thomas, CEO of Lions Festivals, said, “We are constantly evaluating every Lion, consulting the industry to form a view on how they should be structured to reflect the creative landscape and remain relevant. It's important that the Lions remain a barometer for the industry, as well as an enduring creative benchmark.”

Thomas added, “These numbers are also a reminder that there are ebbs and flows, and that it's always best to take a long-term view. The Outdoor Lions are just one example of that – a drop last year of 11 per cent prompted commentary about a decline in the sector, but this year we've seen a determined bounce-back, with entries rising by 7 per cent.”

387 judges across all juries began their assessment on June 14. The first results will be revealed on Day 1 of the 63rd International Festival of Creativity on June 18, 2016, at the Lions Health Awards Ceremony.

The full count is as follows:

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