Cannes Lions 2024: Brand Experience & Activation /

Pop Tarts has won the Grand Prix in the Brand Experience and Activation category at Cannes Lions for the Edible Mascot campaign by Weber Shandwick.

Making its first appearance as a sponsor of college football, Pop tarts staged an absurd post-game stunt on live national TV. The brand’s mascot Strawberry was lowered into a giant toaster in the middle of the field while dancing to the tune of Donna Summer’s hit ‘Hot Stuff’. As Strawberry disappeared into the toaster it held a sign aloft that read ‘dreams really do come true’. Strawberry’s sacrifice was later enjoyed by the Kansas City Wildcat players who tucked into a giant toasted pop tart.

Jury president, Anselmo Ramos, founder and creative chairman at Gut, Global, said that the first time the campaign came up in the discussions for the Grand Prix it was a joke, but then they jurors spent 45 minutes talking non-stop about this. ‘It’s weird, it’s bizarre, it’s uncomfortable, it’s genius,’ he said. ‘It’s a brand not taking itself too seriously, it’s live sampling on national TV, it’s very stupid in a really good way. It’s meme ready. You cannot unsee this, it’s forever ingrained in your brain.’

Ramos said he hoped that awarding the campaign the top prize would influence the industry to stop taking themselves so seriously. ‘The industry is very serious right now, it’s time for advertising to have more fun,’ he said. 

Ramos highlighted four key trends that emerged from this year’s entries. He discussed ‘re-actvertising’, meaning how brands are embracing rapid responses to culture; ‘ego-less brands’, where brands are giving up their advertising spaces to real people or causes; the prevalence of AI for customisation and projecting the future; and ‘silly promotions’ where brands are embracing fun and ridiculous ideas.

Mayo Haters for NotCo by Gut, Miami

The Everyday Tactician for Xbox by McCann, London

Pub Museums for Heineken by LePub, Milan and Publicis, Dublin

Rice of Glory for Super Extra by Maruri, Guayaquil, Grey Argentina, Buenos Aires, and Grey, Sao Paulo

Doordash all the ads for Doordash by Wieden + Kennedy, Portland and Superette, San Francisco

Coors Lights Out for Coors Light by Rethink, Toronto

The Last Barf Bag for Dramamine by FCB Chicago

Sweethearts Situationships for Sweethearts by Tombras, Knoxville

Sightwalks for Sol Cement by Circus Grey, Lima

Clean Sponsorship for Consul by DM9, Sao Paulo