Agenda

12:30 P.M.

Innovation Shortlist Presentations

Living Fabric VML Bogota with Daniel Payan, Maria Francisca Villegas Torres, Bas Korsten

Location: Salle De Presse

2:00 P.M.

Innovation Shortlist Presentations

PainVisible VML Madrid & New York with Mel Routhier, Nelson Leoni, Bas Korsten

Location: Salle De Presse

3:00 P.M.

Creative Access: Transforming Brands Through Innovation and Sustainable Inclusion

Hosted by VML, this panel, moderated by Ezinne Okoro, Chief Client Inclusion Strategy, will dive into the transformative power of sustainable inclusion. Discover how innovative approaches to inclusive design and authentic storytelling can drive collaboration, foster growth and deliver measurable impact.

Location: Cannes Can: Diversity Collective (CC:DC) at Inkwell Beach

RSVP

5:00 - 7:00 P.M.

Microsoft x Family & Friends Get Together

Hosted by Microsoft and Mark Read for WPP agencies, clients, and partners to kick off the week at Cannes.

Location: WPP Beach

8:00 - 11:30 P.M.

VML Sunset Soiree

Join VML friends and family for an evening of sundowners, canapés, conversation and tunes from guest DJ.

Location: WPP Beach

7:00 - 9:00 P.M.

Doors open at 6:00 P.M.

Monday Night Award Show

— Health & Wellness

— Pharma

— Audio & Radio

— Outdoor

— Print & Publishing

Location: Lumiere Theatre, The Palais

Link / Contact

8:30 A.M. - 12:00 P.M.

WPP Café

Join us for coffee on the WPP Beach and meet our people.

8:30 - 10:00 A.M.

Accessibility Drives Creativity — Your Next Brief: Make Accessibility Your Creative Catalyst

Accessibility has the power to unlock creative innovation. Dr. Josh Loebner, Global Head of Inclusive Design at VML, and Taide Guajardo, Chief Brand Officer, P&G Europe, will discuss creative, tech, and brand to explore how inclusive design drives deeper engagement and improved outcomes.

Location: Meta Beach // RSVP here

9:30 A.M.

Black@ — Sports, Music & The Future of Culture

Walt Geer, Chief Creative Officer, Innovation, North America, joins the panel to explore the powerful intersection of sports, music, and culture — and how these forces are shaping what comes next.

Location: The Martinez

10:00 A.M.

From Churn to Earn: Reinventing Subscriptions with AI

Join VML, Stripe, and AWS to dissect the current state of subscriptions and navigate the way to AI-powered future success.

Location: VML Cabana, WPP Beach

10:30 - 11:15 A.M.

CMOs in the Spotlight

Featuring Aude Gandon, Global Chief Marketing Officer at Nestlé

Location: Rotonde Stage

12:00 - 12:25 P.M.

The Ripple Effect: How Consumer Brands and Companies are Re-imagining Health and Wellbeing

Featuring Burcak Simcak, Global Head of Women’s Health and Reproductive Health at Bayer and Ozgun Demit, Chief Digital Officer at Genentech. Moderated by Wendy Lund, Chief Client Officer, Health at WPP.

Location: WPP Beach Main Stage

12:00 P.M. - 3:30 P.M.

AI-Powered Marketing & Agentic Future: Transforming Customer Engagement

Location: Shemara Yacht

12:00 P.M. - 4:00 P.M.

WPP Stream

Location: La Tonnelle, Île Saint-Honorat

2:30 P.M. - 3:00 P.M.

The Future of Shopping

Tyler Murray, Chief Enterprise Solutions Officer, VML North America and Samantha Bukowski, Global Head of Commerce Group M discuss ‘The Future of Shopping.’

Location: WPP Beach Main Stage

3:00 - 3:30 P.M.

Creativity as a Catalyst for Change in Women’s Health

Moderated by Emily Seal, Executive Director of Clio Health, this panel features Camilla Clerke, Global ECD at Ogilvy (Unilever/Dove account); Marzia Zambon, Executive Director of EUROPA DONNA – the European Breast Cancer Coalition; and Kim Dolan, Managing Director at Pinterest.

Location: Hotel Splendid, Cannes

4:30 - 5:00 P.M.

Defying Gravity: Reimagining Brand Narratives

Hosted by VML: A dynamic conversation on the transformative power of storytelling. Award-winning comedian and actor Bowen Yang, Wicked director Jon Chu, and VML’s Global Chief Creative Officer Debbi Vandeven come together in a conversation — moderated by VML Global CEO Jon Cook — that explores how reimagining familiar narratives can unlock extraordinary creative potential.

Location: Debussy Theatre, The Palais

7:00 P.M.

Inkwell Beach — Still We Rise: The Weight and Wellness of Black Success

Walt Geer, Chief Creative Officer, Innovation, North America, contributes to an important conversation on success, wellness, and the evolving Black experience in the creative industry.

Location: Inkwell Beach

7:00 - 9:00 P.M. (Doors open at 6:00 P.M.)

Tuesday Night Award Show

— Entertainment; Entertainment Lions for Gaming; Entertainment Lions for Music; Entertainment Lions for Sport; Design; Digital Craft; Film Craft; Industry Craft

Location: Lumiere Theatre, The Palais

2:45 - 3:15 P.M.

SASSY!!

We’re entering a new era of marketing—culturally connected, creator-amplified, and AI-enabled.

Join Esi Eggleston Bracey, Chief Growth and Marketing Officer at Unilever, to hear how Unilever is transforming its marketing to democratise desire—for everyone, by everyone.

Host: Unilever

Location: Lumiere Theatre, the Palais

3:00 - 3:30 P.M.

Unlocking the Power of Information to Advance the Health of Women

Moderated by Michelle Hutton, Chief Client and Growth Officer at Burson, this discussion features Burcak Simsek, Global Lead of Reproductive Health and Women’s Healthcare at Bayer; Jessica Calef, Head of Pharma and OTC Partnerships at Reddit; and Nichole Davies, Chief Strategy Officer at VML Health. The panel will explore how marketers can effectively harness information to improve women’s well-being by navigating the complex landscape of women’s health, identifying misinformation, and crafting clear, trustworthy messaging that supports informed decision-making.

Location: Hotel Splendid, Cannes

5:00 - 7:00 P.M.

WPP Sundowner

Join us for drinks and a special live performance

7:00 - 9:00 P.M.

Doors open at 6:00 P.M.

Wednesday Night Award Show

— Creative B2B

— Creative Data

— Direct

— Media

— PR

— Social & Creator

Location: Lumiere Theatre, The Palais

Link / Contact

8:30 A.M. - 12:00 P.M.

WPP Café

Join us for coffee on the WPP Beach and meet our people.

Location: WPP Beach

10:30 - 11:15 A.M.

CMOs in the Spotlight

Featuring Leandro Barreto, Chief Marketing Officer at Unilever

Location: Rotonde Stage

11:30 - 11:55 A.M.

10x Stronger: The Future of Commerce & Retail Media

Kathleen Dunlop, Chief Marketing Officer, Beauty and Unilever, Seth Dallaire, EVP and Chief Growth Officer Walmart, Mel Edwards, VML Global President, join this panel to discuss the landscape of Commerce & Retail Media and what the future looks like for brands in this space.

Location: WPP Beach Main Stage

3:00 - 4:00 P.M.

What Won & Why?

Debbi Vandeven joins WPP creative leaders for a deep dive into the work that won at Cannes, and why.

Location: WPP Beach Main Stage

4:00 PM

ACT Responsible Tributes Celebration


VML has four campaigns featured in this year’s ACT Responsible exhibition. Learn more here. Public voting will take place onsite throughout the week at the ACT Responsible Hall, located in the Palais des Festivals (Foyer Debussy, 1st floor).

This Thursday event will honor the top-voted campaigns and recognize the Champions of Good.

Location: RTL Beach // RSVP here

7:00 - 9:00 P.M.

Doors open at 6:00 P.M.

Thursday Night Award Show

— Creative Business Transformation

— Creative Strategy

— Creative Effectiveness

— Luxury

— Brand Experience & Activation

— Creative Commerce

— Innovation

Location: Lumiere Theatre, The Palais

Link / Contact