Judging #Cannes2025: Carl Willoughby - Messy creates the best work

Ideas aren’t just thoughts on a page — they’re gifts. A spark that reaches out and makes you feel something deep and real and meaningful. Judging at Cannes Lions this year, I was reminded just how powerful that gift can be, both for the creators and the people lucky enough to witness it.

By Carl Willoughby

7 Jul 2025

Carl Willoughby with his fellow Cannes Lions Direct2025 jury members (Image supplied)

The dust has finally settled. The whirlwind that is the Cannes Lions festival has come and gone.

You cannot ignore the scale of this event: 26,900 entries and 841 Lions awarded across multiple categories. It’s staggering.

While 841 awards might sound generous, it’s anything but.

The true measure lies in the conversion metrics.

This year, for the first time, I was fortunate enough to be part of the jury, and it was quite an experience.

Judging hundreds of campaigns, round after round, whittling down to a shortlist, then eventually selecting the final medals — it’s a privilege and a responsibility.

Our jury awarded 61 metals, including the coveted Grand Prix.

As a creative, there’s nothing quite like sitting with the work, interrogating it, sometimes defending pieces you believe in, other times being swayed by a different perspective.

It was inspiring, exhausting, and utterly rewarding.

The people on the jury were incredible. We all got along well — really well, as the days went on.

From our first meeting at the hotel to the welcome drinks on the Croisette at the Carlton Hotel beach, the gathering of global talent was awe-inspiring.

Heavy hitters from every corner of the world, united to set the standard for excellence.

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The true weight of your responsibilty

Judging at Cannes is a milestone for anyone in the industry, but the true weight of that responsibility only hits you when you’re deep in the work, aware of the impression you’re about to make.

Gaetan, our jury chair, reminded us frequently to step into the shoes of the consumer: what are we asking them to do? What response does this work evoke?

That mindset was vital — Direct is a broad category, encompassing everything from Instagram DMs to TV ads urging viewers to take a toilet break during the Super Bowl.

How does it make you feel

The media varied wildly, but the core question remained: how does it make you feel?

We saw many recurring themes. I tried to group and save pieces to make sense of the sheer volume — a little like being a data analyst, searching for patterns.

But more than data or analysis, this experience was about feeling.

The way the work moves you is what defines quality. It’s that emotional impact that stays with you.

You’ll hear plenty about AI and its role in campaigns — Cannes even asks you to explain the use of it (if any) when submitting your entry.

But beyond the tech, it always comes back to this: work that fits the mould versus work that breaks it.

The tried and tested feels safe, but the work that surprises you — that you haven’t seen before — gives you that incredible feeling.

Celebrate the magic

And we all know that feeling. Finding a piece that inspires you.

It’s not just that it fits the brand; it’s the joy it brings. That smile, that emotion that sticks with you.

Work that doesn’t do that simply falls flat. That’s what we’re after — the beauty of an idea so simple, so powerful, it stays with you.

It’s like watching an athlete nail an impossible feat or hearing a song that makes you want to sing along.

And yes, Cannes is after all a competition, one that really celebrates the magic.

Not every piece will be everyone’s favourite, but the work we see each year is packed with that feeling — that gift.

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Not just be ‘right

What I really wish is for us to bring more of that feeling back into our daily work. When we look at the big impact of winning work, it’s clear: work has to stand out, win hearts, make people feel something, not just be ‘right.’

Too often, we lose that. Work that’s right is logical and rational; it’s actually really just safe.

The messy emotional human mind

If there’s one thing I’m taking from Cannes this year, it’s this: the messy, emotional human mind still creates the best work.

Sure, we’ve got data, AI, and new tools, but in the end, it’s about making people — target audiences, markets, jurors — feel something.

That feeling is a gift, and that’s the real power of an idea.

Because at the end of the day, it’s not the data or the tech that stays with us — it’s that simple, beautiful gift of an idea that moves us, changes us and stays with us.

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