• by Richard Whitman , Columnist, June 8, 2022

Publicis Groupe’s Leo Burnett is out with its annual forecast of ads and campaigns it expects will do quite well in collecting awards at the upcoming Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity later this month.

Leo’s Global CCO Chaka Sobhani curated the list of this year’s top 20 frontrunners which includes the agency’s own anti-gun-violence effort called “The Lost Class” on behalf of Chicago-based grass roots organization Change The Ref.

That may seem a bit self-serving, but the campaign has already won dozens of awards including top honors from the Clios, One Club and Art Directors Club. And it addresses one of Americas most persistent and tragic problems—the endless slaughter of the country’s young people by disturbed human beings who can buy a gun without restrictions one day and have blood on their hands the next. So yeah, my guess is it will do pretty well at the Cannes Festival.

Other top contenders include  “The Missing Chapter” (P&G Whisper, India) as well as future-facing work like Havas’ “Liquid Billboard” (Adidas, UAE) and Area 23’s “Sick Beats” (Woojer, USA).

Check out the full list here.