At the 2014 Cannes Lions festival of Creativity 123RF was once again present with a number of exclusive parties in a luxurious apartment a stone’s throw from the Palais des Festivals. From the balcony you can look out over the picturesque harbour of Cannes with the crazy ships on the other side of the strip and exhausted festival folk with dangling entrance badges walking by on the street below. Inside, DJ Jimmy Turner and friends took care of the tunes , and guest sip on a cold rose or beer while taking a break from the intensity of the festival below.
Downstairs, squeezed between two bars you can find the secret entrance to Villa Marina at the Square Mérimée. It is not easy to miss the apartment though as there is a huge banner that spans the entire balcony with the words: 123RF Roaring Fun. Once in the apartment, cultures come together, friendships are made en inspiration soars when creative minds meet over a drink or two. All this takes place in inspiring surroundings with modern paintings, a zebra that has found a second life as a rug and a crawling baby sculpture climbing up the bathroom door. You cannot make it up.
Monday, June 16
Young Dogs – One hell of a party
A fixture of the festival, the Dutch Young Dogs kicked off with a beach party at Plage Le Goéland on Boulevard de la Croisette. 123RF was one of the sponsors of One Hell of a Party. We supplied four screens where a VJ did a live show with images from the archives of 123RF. DJ Robin S took care of the music and in combination with the VJ skills Rogier de Leeuw and his live visuals this was one hell of a beginning of the week.
Tuesday, June 17
Young creatives – RA’W and Young Dogs
What do you get when you put a group of young strategists and conceptual creatives together in a room? Right. A gathering of raw, young dogs enjoying the view, the drinks and each others company. The first event of the week at Villa Marina was an evening with drinks for talented young Dutch advertising people from RA’W and the Dutch Young Dogs, some of whom earned their trip to Cannes through a series of pitches over the past year. They left a trail of business cards, empty beer bottles and energy behind.
Wednesday, June 18
RA’W Private Session with Daniele Fiandaca
Daniele Fiandaca is an inspiring man. He is not only Head of Innovation at Cheil UK, he is also the founder of Creative Social. During his visit to 123RF Fiandaca shared his vision of innovation in advertising with the young talents of RA’W. During his Q & A hour some of the most memorable statements were: “If you are the most intelligent person in the room, you’re in the wrong room.” In addition, he insisted on the importance of social media. You don’t have a blog or use Twitter? Then you look at yourself and quickly create a page because twitter, for example. can make you better at storytelling. After answering many questions, he shared the “the best advice” that he himself had ever received, “meet people!” After a few groupselfies in front of the 123RF logo screen the crowd moved on to the next inspiring event. This session made it to the RA’W Cannes top 5 events of their Cannes Lions week.
World Cup: Netherlands – Australia
A 5-1 win against Spain is of course impossible to repeat and everyone knows how dramatically the atmosphere can change if a National team loses out. The match of the Netherlands against Australia was nerve wracking and emotions were clearly visible on all the faces in the room. The orange 123RF sunglasses did their best at hiding the tension and turned the apartment more Dutch gradually. Many guests went for it with their orange wigs, football shirts and other orange-coloured accessories. After the highs and lows of the game, it finally ended at 3 – 1. There was cheering, crowd surfing and a thunderous applause before the party started.
Double Dutch
After the game, the ‘Orange Fever’ seamlessly turned into the Double Dutch party. From all over the French town supporters and music lovers came to 123RF for a nightcap and a pizza slice. Jimmy Turner provided the oldssc hool house and disco beats. There were many locations in Cannes where the match was broadcast, but there were only a few places with two giant screens, a NASA sized satellite dish and top quality sound. Many fans hated missing out on the game at 123RF, Jimmy Turner did his best to lift the spirits up even further for those that did make it in and succeeded.
Thursday, June 19
Dutch Digital Design Drinks
Initiator Bert Hagendoorn co-hosted the Dutch Digital Design Drinks at Villa Marina on Thursday. This is an initiative to bring. Dutch digital design to the forefront and give it International recognition. Whereas Dutch Design is widely recognised and respected all over the World, Dutch Digital Design has not yet reached the status it deserves. Through publications, lectures and events this initiative is building a stronger brand image. The event was well attended and Villa Marina was again full to capacity for a few quality networking hours.
The Queen of Versailles
A party is not complete without some Royalty. 123RF was pleasantly surprised to get a visit from The Queen of Versailles. This fabulous billionaire wife has become internationally known for the award winning documentary the Queen of Versailles following the rise and fall of the financial time share empire build up by her and her husband. It followed the construction of a Versailles-inspired home, the biggest private home in the US, during the economic crisis. With her entourage, consisting of her stylist, a film crew with presenter sporting a glamorous look and an enthusiastic PR lady, the Queen was a big hit at our party. Afterwards they took two 123RF promotion bears home with them. She pressed it firmly against her chest while exclaiming, ‘these are for my puppies’. Her twins at home as it turned out. It was a special meeting.
Secret Sip 2.0
2013 was legendary. 2014 was similar epic. The recipe is simple. While huge and extravagant parties go on at the beach and party boats, there is an intimate and exclusive party at 123RF. The balcony and main room are the décor for DJs Jimmy Turner and Theo Cooper playing the tastiest tunes. Guests hit the dancefloor in a casual and personal atmosphere enjoyed a drink and the view. Friends of 123RF popped in throughout the night and into the early hours, dangerously close to sunrise.
We had a great week and the team would like to thank all the enthusiastic, helpful and well behaved guests who visited us during on one of our evenings. We hope to see you next year for a new week full of Roaring Fun!
Text: Martine Bakker (Freelance Copywriter & Editor) Website: www.thestorybakery.com Email: martine@thestorybakery.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thestorybakery