News in Biref 24 Apr 2013

Lion of St. Mark awarded to ad legend Lee Clow

The organisers of the 60th Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, the world's largest and most prestigious global annual awards celebrating creative excellence in advertising and communications, have announced that the 2013 recipient of the prestigious Lion of St. Mark award will be advertising legend Lee Clow, chairman of TBWAMedia Arts Lab and director of Media Arts, TBWAWorldwide. The accolade will honour Clow's long and outstanding contribution to creativity in advertising and communications. He will be presented with the Lion of St. Mark in Cannes on Saturday 22 June.

Young Media Academy

The Cannes Lions Young Media Academy programme is a brand new learning initiative designed to develop fresh approaches to creativity in media. Taking place during the Festival, the course incorporates exclusive presentations from industry leaders, sessions from the main Cannes Lions content programme, screenings of the work and much more. Those taking part will leave the course with the tangible skills and insights invaluable to media careers.

Exclusive tuition from a media legend

The course will take place under the expert guidance of tutor Maria Luisa Francoli Plaza. As the former global CEO of MPG and Havas Media North America and a multi-award-winner in media categories across international festivals, Francoli Plaza is ideally placed to lead participants to a comprehensive understanding of the applications of creativity in media.

A maximum of 35 places are available. You are eligible for application if you are aged 28 years or under and employed at a media agency or media owner. If you would like to apply for a place please send an email with your latest CV or updated LinkedIn profile.

To register to attend the 60th Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, visit Cannes Lions.

Spikes Asia opens for registration

The Spikes Asia Festival of Creativity, Asia Pacific’s premier festival and awards for the creative communications and advertising industry, has opened for delegate registrations. Taking place from 15-17 September at Suntec Singapore, Spikes Asia will offer three days of seminars and forums given by some of the best minds in the business, as well as a showcase of the greatest work coming out of the region, allowing a true absorption into creative excellence. The festival also provides the unrivalled opportunity to network with industry peers from across Asia Pacific with dedicated Spikes Nights, including the fun and much anticipated Networking After Dark, which sees a selection of Singapore’s agencies open their doors for a night of parties. Investing in the future of the industry, the Creative Academy and the Marketers Academy will once again provide intense, targeted learning for young industry talent whilst the Young Spikes Competitions give rising stars the chance to compete in Integrated, Media and Agency Shoot Out competitions with the hope of taking home the gold medal. Further information on the festival programme and events, along with details of how to register can be found at.

McCann Worldgroup makes key moves in London

McCann Worldgroup has announced several leadership changes within the McCann London office. Chris Macdonald, chief Executive, McCann London, has been appointed to the role of president, McCann Erickson New York. Co-ECDs of McCann London, Rob Doubal and Laurence Thomson, have been promoted to the new role of co-presidents and chief creative officers of the London office.

Macdonald joined McCann London in 2005 and led the agency’s Intel European business, MasterCard UK and American Airlines accounts. In January 2008, Chris was promoted to CEO and the agency had a period of considerable success, winning over £100m of new billings and major creative awards for American Airlines, Heinz and Xbox work.  Recently London has won several new accounts including General Mills’ Nature Valley, and the appointment to the UK Government’s Marketing Communications Roster. Doubal and Thomson, who joined from Wieden + Kennedy in May 2012, will provide creative leadership and vision for the agency in their new role as co-presidents and chief creative officers.

Criminal Music Launches, Bringing Composers Closer to the Target

Rachel Dunn and Tera Uhlinger (pictured) have launched Criminal Music, a boutique full-service production company dedicated to ensuring quality in commercial music by fostering true collaboration between the agency and the artist. The company opens its doors with a roster that includes DJ Cheapshot & Bridge Compositions, Tony Bevilacqua, Jeremy Simmons, Jesse Novak, Christopher Lennertz, Transcenders, redCola, and Brandon Arnovick for exclusive representation in the branded arena.

Uhlinger, a management and production vet, recognised the same disconnect on the part of artists in the music industry.  Criminal works exclusively and in partnership with a roster of talent, creating an atmosphere of trust and mutual commitment that results in music of the highest possible quality.