Cannes Young Lions Celebrates Creative Champions from VML

Joao — João Chicau (VML Portugal) and Tomás Almeida (Akt Creative) won a bronze in Digital at the international Young Lions competition, part of the Cannes Lions.

VML's brightest young talents have excelled at the 2024 Cannes Young Lions competition, securing top honors across multiple categories and offices worldwide. This year's results underscore VML's commitment to fostering creative excellence and innovation among its young professionals.

The Cannes Young Lions competition is an annual contest held as part of the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, which recognizes the next generation of leaders in advertising, marketing, and design. Competitors are typically under 30 and participate in teams of two across various categories like Print, Media, Digital, Film, and more. Local qualifying rounds are held to select national representatives, who then advance to compete globally at Cannes, vying for gold, silver, and bronze awards.

At the global competition, we're thrilled to announce that João Chicau, copywriter at VML Portugal, won Bronze for “Pass Your Guilt” in the Digital category. Joao partnered with Tomás Almeida, Art Director at Akt Creative in Portugal to create a digital campaign to bring more people into the movement for climate justice by Project Dandelion.

Here's a summary of VML's top performers:

In the APAC region:

First place in the Film category: Jordan Ellis, copywriter, and Madelene McGuiness, creative, at VML Australia
Third place in Film & Integrated: Trần Quỳnh Bảo Trân, creative, and Hà Ngọc Khánh Thy, creative, at VML Vietnam

In the EMEA region:

First place in the Digital category: Anna Belka and Eve Nadin, junior creatives at VML UK
First place in Media: Noa Luiten and Jasper Macken, art directors at VML Belgium
First place in Print: Catarina Araujo, art director at VML Portugal
First place in Design: Francisco Roque, copywriter at VML Portugal
First place in Digital: João Chicau, copywriter at VML Portugal
Second place in Digital: Alejandra Lara and Adriana Hiromoto, junior creatives at VML UK
Second place in PR: Catalina Segura Draper, creative copywriter ay VML Health Spain

In the LATAM region:

First place in the Media category: Sebastián Martinez, strategic planner, VML Colombia, and Diego Gutierrez, business manager, VML Colombia
First place in Digital: Natalia Rodriguez and Sebastián Ulloa, art directors at VML Chile
First place in Digital: Giovanna Marques Guisard Restivo, copywriter at VML Brazil, and Lucas Bertolacini Fusco Pessoa, art assistant at VML Brazil
First place in PR: Sandra Verónica Urbina Vargas, copywriter at VML Mexico, and Elisa Sarahi Martinez Sánchez, art director at VML Mexico
Third place in Digital: Jacqueline Verduzco, copywriter at VML Mexico, and Maria Fernanda Mejia, multimedia designer at VML Mexico

In North America:

Second place in the Print category: Alex Bohner, art director at VML New York, and Ryan Kane, copywriter at VML New York

Additionally, in a unique local competition, Lina María Camargo and Sergio Lizarazo, creative directors at VML Colombia, won first place in the Digital category of the Senior Lions. The Senior Lions is a competition exclusive to Colombia for creatives over 30 years old, celebrating their continuing impact on the industry.

Furthermore, two VML creatives will participate in the Cannes Can: Diversity Collective, an initiative aimed at promoting diversity and inclusivity within the creative industry at the Cannes Lions Festival. Representing our agency are Cristina Roa, Executive Creative Director at VML Colombia, and Purnajyoti Kundu, Senior Art Director at VML India.

For errors or omissions, email jamie.dierking@vml.com.