Dubai Lynx Highlights

Dubai Lynx Highlights

You cannot fail to be impressed when you arrive in Dubai.  It is a city that grows by 300,000 citizens every year and boasts one the highest skylines in the world.  This city promises not only to be impressive, but vibrant, exciting, and fun. Trust me, it delivers on all three.

The Dubai Lynx is only in its second year, but has already become a firm fixture on the creative calendar. With over 2,023 entries from 12 countries (257 TV spots alone), it’s easy to see why.  A packed week full of seminars and workshops started with the legend himself, David Droga.  He shared his unique POV on creative agencies bringing companies and consumers closer together with a mixture of gorilla-style marketing interspersed with more traditional mediums.

Droga was funny, outspoken, and genuinely passionate, something the audience really picked up on.  There were few awkward moments where he apologized over and over for the language and content of the spots. Obviously this was something we would not see in Cannes, but it reminded us of the cultural differences that made it hard to translate Droga’s five ideas to the local markets. Whether we will soon see more anarchic campaigns coming from Egypt or Oman, the seed has definitely been planted.

With that, I must mention the contagious seminar by former Shots founding Editor Paul Kemp-Robertson (the publication and service that looks at all types of new marketing and forward thinking advertising solutions). He focused on a couple of great examples of new-style advertising including my favorite Where are the Joneses made with FORD as an online “soap” that followed the story of a brother and sister tracking down all the siblings from their sperm-donating father. Of course the vehicle they travel the globe in is a FORD...

The real message Paul got across was the fact that modern brands must enter into a dialogue with consumers - not a monologue, since people react better to brands that encourage feedback from them. Brands should feel like a familiar friend or TV show, not something that is shoved upon audiences, but something they can emotionally attach to.

Now on to the work!  The Grand Prix went to Leo Burnett/Cairo for a series of Karaoke-inspired spots for Music Channel Melody. Agency of the Year went to JWT/Dubai who also cleaned up in the Print and Outdoor categories with too many Golds to mention.  Second and third place went to agencies FP7 Doha and Fortune Promoseven Dubai respectively.

Before we go, it is worth commenting on the gala dinner.  This show may only be in its second year, but boy oh boy, does it mean a lot to these guys! As a veteran of every major event in the creative calendar, I can truly say this dinner was the loudest. Every Gold was greeted with a wall of sound from Klaxon megaphones and all kinds of noise making equipment usually reserved for the most passionate of South American football matches. The atmosphere was incredible -- I even joined in with my table guests from Tonic Dubai banging and crashing every thing we could lay our hands on.

To sum it up, the Lynx will successfully go forth, building upon the strength its ever-evolving advertising landscape.  The event is a must for all to attend – if only to experience the sheer enthusiasm and determination of the region.  You’ll find that you’ll get excited just to be part of it. My advice?  Be here next year, earplugs in hand!

Next stop: Cannes!