CEBU, Philippines — Grab's "Summer" advertisement has brought home the Silver Lion Award at the recent Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity.
Conceptualized by GIGIL, an independent Filipino advertising agency, this vertical campaign shows a man drenched in waterfall-like sweat due to the extreme heat.
Herbert Hernandez, the agency’s founding partner, explained that the film's concept is based on the experience of the Filipino people.
He said that the concept of the film is a hyperbole of what Filipinos felt during the summer season and to make it more entertaining, they exaggerated it.
The agency collaborated with the award-winning production house in Thailand, Factor01 Bangkok, with Director Wuthisak “Un” Anarnkaporn.
Hernandez shared that one of the challenges they experienced was navigating through cultural nuances and overcoming the language barrier due to their different nationalities.
“...buti na lang mabait pareho, so, we tried to understand each other kaya na pull off pa rin namin,” he said.
Furthermore, Hernandez believes that GIGIL's achievement is a remarkable symbol of being “world-class in terms of creativity.”
“Achievement to ng lahat ng creatives sa Pilipinas and the client na kaya natin gumawa ng world-class na campaign,” he said.
Held on June 21, 2024, the victory was the third for GIGIL at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. In 2021 and 2022, the agency brought home a bronze Lion for its advertisements in RC Cola ‘Family’ and in Cheers by Sanitary Care Products Asia ‘Party.’
The Lions International Festival of Creativity is held annually in Cannes, France with a mission to recognize the world’s most outstanding advertisements.
Other Philippine agencies that also brought home a Lion Award include BBDO Guerrero, which won bronze with its client Mountain Dew for the advertisement titled ‘Dew Battle,’ and Ogilvy Manila, which won silver with its client IKEA for ‘This Is An IKEA Store.’ — Renee Ross Villariasa