AKQA wins 22 Cannes Lions including Grand Prix for Design and Glass: The Lion for Change
The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity has recognised AKQA’s exceptional world-changing work that propels social progress. Cemento Sol’s Sightwalks in partnership with Grey is awarded the Grand Prix for Design. UN Women NL and DEGIRO’s Pink Chip in collaboration with AKQA is honoured with a Gold Glass: The Lion for Change.
The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity is home to the world’s most prestigious annual industry awards. The Festival hosts a celebration for the best innovative work and fosters collaboration across global design and communication.
Grand Prix, Design and four Gold Lions for Brand Experience and Activation, Media, Outdoor, and Sustainable Development Goals.
Cemento Sol, Sightwalks and Grey
The series of tactile cement tiles empowers visually impaired people to access their surroundings more independently. Launched in Peru’s Miraflores district, the tiles feature horizontal lines which indicate the kind of establishment that the person is passing by, while the vertical lines on top and below identify if the shop or business is positioned to their left or right. The copyright-free initiative encourages the rest of the world to implement the project for accessible navigation.
The work also won two Silver Lions for Outdoor and Direct and a Bronze Lion for Design.
Three Gold Lions, Glass: The Lion for Change, Sustainable Development Goals and Creative Strategy
UN Women NL and DEGIRO, Pink Chip and AKQA
Pink Chip is a world’s first collection of indices that tracks the financial performance of exceptional women-led businesses in global markets, aligning with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal 5: Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls. The first-of-its-kind initiative visualises important data for investors to see for themselves how investing in women is better for their bottom line, boosting their returns while also supporting female leaders.
The Glass Lion honours culture-shifting creativity, recognising work that addresses issues of gender inequality or prejudice, through the conscious representation of gender.
The project also won a further two Silver Lions for Direct and Innovation.
Gold Lion, Brand Experience and Activation
Arroz Super Extra, Rice of Glory and Grey
Revolutionising the food industry one grain at a time. The project features a competition that encourages people to find over 20 special grains of rice. Each grain was meticulously hand-painted with miniature designs by Sri Lankan artist Dayananda. The artwork includes luxury prizes ranging from smart watches, laptops and a trip to the Galapagos
The project also won a Bronze Lion in the Direct category.
Gold Lion, Social and Influencer
Ruh Fighting Championship, The National Sport of Kazakhstan and Grey
The National Sport of Kazakhstan brought domestic violence to a professional mixed martial arts ring. The work created a controversial debate on social media, challenging the morality of the event. However, instead of broadcasting the fight, shocking real footage of domestic violence captured from different areas of Kazakhstan was publicised, encouraging a shift in social behaviour.
Silver Lion, Design
Planetary Guardians, Living visual identity and AKQA
Collaborating with Aza Raskin and the Earth Species Project, machine learning was used to transform organic sounds emitted by nature into dynamic 3D shapes that become hero logos. The timeless innovation raises awareness of the current climate crisis by sharing compelling stories from nature to help humanity become more synchronised with Earth, bringing audiences together to listen to the most important voice of all.
Silver Lion, Luxury and Lifestyle
Universidade Zumbi dos Palmares, The Anti-Racist Bag and Grey
In Brazilian retail stores, people of colour and other marginalised groups are often targeted to have their bags searched under accusations of theft. Designed to combat this racism, local artisans crafted designer handbags with a sewn-in label with Brazil’s anti-racism law and a QR code to report incidents to authorities.
Silver Lion, Health and Wellness
Reinserta, Tres and Grey
The eye-opening short film, launched in collaboration with Reinserta, Mexico’s leading NGO supporting children who are exposed to the justice system, highlights the heartbreaking reality of women who give birth in prison and encourages donations to improve living conditions for female prisoners and their children.
Bronze Lion, Creative Data
Veolia, Pulse of Nature and Grey
Real-time data on air quality, water pollution, and soil health was closely monitored to identify the most pressing issues and allocate resources for sustainable solutions on a freely accessible interactive map. The project accelerates ecological transformation to restore natural resources.
Bronze Lion, Film
Article 19, The Last Trip and Grey
The short film recounts the last days of Moisés Sánchez’s life as a taxi driver, taking an unexpected turn by revealing that his disappearance and murder was because he was a journalist. His tragedy demands justice for the hundreds of journalists murdered in Mexico and to prevent future cases like this from going unpunished.
Bronze Lion, Print and Publishing
Marodi, A Soup to Remember and Grey
A limited collection of five books, each containing alphabet pastas that spell out the verse of a traditional Croatian folk song, to preserve and celebrate Međimurje heritage. Inviting children from local educational institutions and nursery schools to embrace the local language.
