All over the world, agencies that come to play hard at the Cannes Festival prepare their pieces well in advance. In fact, at this moment they are already producing the ideas chosen in the last weeks, in order to have all their competition material ready to start their journey in January.
In other words, if we want to go after the first lion for Costa Rica next year, whatever color it is and whichever agencies win it, we have to focus on developing, choosing and producing the ideas that can sneak through to the winners. It is key, of course, to choose the categories in which we can compete with low budgets, and especially, to look for the most recognized brands so that they have a better option.
It is not difficult to anticipate that a jury tends to see a Playstation or Bravia piece with better eyes, given that their proposals have been consolidated with a perception of legitimacy and winning. That is to say, the sushi on the corner, the masseuse in the neighborhood or the sex shop in the mall do not have the same possibilities, since they are characterized by being territory used for cheats and rifles.
What is true, however, is that most of the winning truchos in Cannes first go through an important legitimization process. That is to say, since January they begin to be published in specialized magazines, distributed on the Internet, entered in all previous festivals and thus, they go from total unknowns to pieces that manage to be heard and seen, thus gaining authenticity.
In fact, in the screenings at Cannes it is very evident when a piece is already known or is among the winners of the audience, as they get spontaneous applause. On the contrary, the unknown ones need much more idea and production to receive some recognition in the theaters. Also, as we all know, the origin helps and for this reason, local stories that happen in Bolivia, Costa Rica, Macedonia or Vietnam, do not have the same possibilities, as much as it pains us to recognize it. The global, the internationally known or the exotic has a better option than the local and particular, with the exception of what may originate in London or New York, for example, or what we have become accustomed to from Hollywood or CNN.
For this reason, it is necessary that our agencies that wish to participate, focus on producing now, to polish and to explode until they reach the world level. Many of our ideas do not prosper in festivals because of poor production quality. It is important to note that our eyes are not good judges, so it is key that our ideas are reviewed by expert and trained eyes outside of Costa Rica, to note their observations and allow the ideas to grow to their full potential.
For example, as difficult as it is to win on television, a production like the recent Bavaria by jotabeqú has opportunities at international festivals. However, it is important that it be seen and critiqued by those who know the world stage better, so that it can be fine-tuned, adjusted, re-edited to grow even more, if that is the case. (To my local eyes, the commercial would do nothing, but to the more refined global eyes, it may need some tweaking). ) That’s the way it is and always has been, so we must understand that the game until Cannes requires a slightly more astute approach with a good dose of added mischief. As a country, then, we must be clear that the pieces require polishing until the last moment, and that among other things, pieces from other years must still participate if they are still valid.
To take good ideas to Cannes to win, logos have to be reduced, a lot of information has to be eliminated and most of the specifications have to disappear. However, I insist that the quality of the production has to be raised. We cannot compete on those stages without achieving the world-class production that is required. Of course, the winners at Cannes are also lottery winners, and often win pieces that many of us would not have included on a shortlist.
So, with the sole intention of triggering winning creative processes, we should focus on Cannes 2008 now. The Clios, Fiaps, Caribes and other festivals along the way are for exposure and legitimacy. In fact, cases such as the Caribbean are important for this purpose, and for this reason, the massive participation from many countries is not surprising. It is particularly for this reason that we must also review the date of the Volcano in Costa Rica, to sneak into the calendar of warm-ups, if in the future we would like to open it to international participation.
In summary, it is a time for brainstorming, storms and hurricanes of ideas. It is time to organize the production, to support each other and to develop winners. Then in January or February at the latest, we will have to send what we have produced to travel around the world, so that by June, we will have legitimate options to start the harvest.
There is no time to lose.
