Melanie Pennec — Senior Art Director, DDB Paris
Melanie talks to TheNextGag about judging the Cannes Lions, what makes the DDB network great and why we need more humor in advertising.
Melanie Pennec is a Senior Art Director at DDB Paris in France.
Melanie started her career at DDB Paris in 2010, where she met with Jean Weesa, the second part of her creative team. The duo was then hired by the agency V in Paris., which was merged with DDB Paris.
She has worked on numerous brands, such as Ubisoft, McDonald’s, Renault, Canal+ Orange or Volkswagen.
Last year, she celebrated her 30th birthday winning her first international awards across the major shows, including Cannes Lions, One Show, and Eurobest. She was also designated French Art Director of the Year, making 2016 the most exciting year of her creative career.
Melanie Pennec was a member of the Outdoor Jury at the 2017 Cannes Lions Festival.
THENEXTGAG: CAN YOU TALK TO US ABOUT YOUR EXPERIENCE JUDGING THE CANNES LIONS ?
MELANIE PENNEC: It is a bit weird to realize that you are not judging all the entries. I wasn’t expecting that.
There were two things that struck me. The first thing is that I was judging the Outdoor category. And everybody was asking me about outdoor print ads which is wrong. Because it is not what the category is about. Outdoor is ambient, outdoor is out-of-home, outdoor is activation …
And the second thing is that we receive an awful lot amount of work to judge. Obviously, you don’t do everything on location and you start doing the online pre-judging one month before. And it turns out that it is slighty frustrating that you don’t get to see everything. And you even fear that you might have missed some incredible work. That being said, we awarded our Grand Prix to Fearless Girl, and you could have imagined this even before we started. But among all the entries, there are some that you haven’t seen before and they get a shortlist on the first day of judging and finally end up with a Gold on the third day. It’s unbelievable.
But I can’t help but feel a little bit frustrated that we might have miss other incredible stuff.
TNG: BUT IS IT HUMANLY POSSIBLE TO WATCH EVERYTHING ?
MP: No, of course. Or maybe, only if you start six months in advance. But, it might not have really changed the end results. Because, there sure are a lot of entries to go through.
It can be amazing to sit in a jury room and see how ratings evolve according to what people say about the work.
TNG: THE JURY MEMBERS OF THE ENTERTAINMENT CATEGORY MADE A POINT OF SEEING EVERYTHING. AND THERE WAS A 4 HOUR FILM THAT WAS ENTERED AND EVEN A 1H30 FILM THAT WAS SHORTLISTED. THEY BELIEVED THAT IT WOULD HAVE BEEN A LACK OF RESPECT TO FAST FORWARD. BUT THEIR JUDGING STARTED THREE MONTHS BEFORE THE EVENT.
MP: Of course. That’s unbelievable. But, you appreciate the fact that jury members take judging very seriously. It can be amazing to sit in a jury room and see how ratings evolve according to what people say about the work. It is not just bullshit. It can even sometimes seem likes its verbal warfare. Everybody listens to everybody but they dish out arguments and counter-arguments. But, it is definitely useful. I am positive that our winners list wouldn’t have been the same it it was only online judging.
TNG: BUT DOESN’T IT MEAN THAT THE PERSON WITH THE STRONGEST VOICE CAN INFLUENCE THE RESULTS ?
MP: No, it”s not that. The person who wins the argument is the one who makes the most valid point, who is smart and who brings a point of view that is relevant. It is not a shouting match.
One thing that I want to say, is that it is really a good thing to have a lot of French people sitting on the juries. Because it can be super important to have a local jury member in the room to give you the cultural context around an entry. Fair enough, France culture is quite easy to grasp. But for some work that can come from Asia, for example, it is super important. Having an explanation of why a campaign was made and why it made sense can clearly affect your rating.
TNG: AND AFTER JUDGING THE LIONS, YOU SPENT YOUR WEEK IN CANNES WITH THE PHYLLIS PROJECT, RIGHT ?
MP: Yes. I did both. First, I was in the jury. It was an amazing experience. You get to spend one week in a room with some of the best creatives in the world. The level is incredible. And if you are not completely fluent in English, it is hard.
And after that, I took part in the Phyllis project. It is a women mentorship program. It’s something that is kind of a trend this year. But, I feel that DDB was one of the first to the party here. The goal of the program is to raise the number of Creative Directors within the DDB Group. They selected twelve women from nine countries among the network. I am one of the twelve lucky people. And during a two-year time period, we are getting trained to become Creative Director. Among other things, we follow the Creative Council of DDB Worldwide. It is a meeting that happens three times a year between the twelve most important creative leaders of the network. That’s when they decide which work is being sent to Cannes and such. The objective of DDB is to increase the number of female creatives on this council.
The Phyllis Project is an amazing opportunity for me. I will get two years of training. I am so happy to be part of it. And what they teach us is very effective. It’s done in the very best American way. You get through a lot of training sessions. This week, at Cannes, I got a lot of different classes: media training, interviewing … It is great.
I have been in Cannes for two weeks and I feel like I keep on talking about women initiatives. First, with Fearless Girl winning the Grand Prix and now with this. I understand that the Cannes Lions organization made a point this year to get more women on the juries. There is a real shift that is happening.
TNG: I THINK IT IS GREAT. BECAUSE YOU HEAR A LOT OF TALES OF SENIOR CREATIVES BECOMING CREATIVE DIRECTORS AND DISCOVERING THAT IT IS ANOTHER JOB. AND THE WORST THING IS THAT YOU GET THROWN INTO IT WITOUT ANY GUIDANCE AND DIRECTION.
MP: Exactly.
TNG: DO YOU THINK THAT SOMEONE SHOULD LEARN THE JOB OF CREATIVE DIRECTOR BEFORE BECOMING ONE ?
MP: I don’t think there should be rules. As a matter of fact, when I was promoted from assistant art director to art director, I went through a lot. It can be surprising to discover that being a good creative doesn’t prepare you at all for becoming a good creative director.
But, my current Creative Director at DDB Paris, Alexander Kalchev, for example, transitioned from creative to creative director quite easily. There are some who seemed to be prepared for it. So, I don’t know. Maybe, it was already in their nature.
But, for me, I am delighted to receive some kind of training. I don’t feel like you necessarily need it, but it is obvious that it helps. I took advantage of being in Cannes to speak to a couple of creative directors who told me that the day that you get promoted is like going to hell. So, we will see. Of course there is no guarantee that I will become creative director a day. And first and foremost, I have to work a lot before anything. Anyway, I am glad to get mentored.
TNG: IT MIGHT ALSO BE THAT SOME CREATIVES WHEN THEY GET PROMOTED TEND TO MIMICK WHAT THEY HAVE SEEN. THEY TAKE SOMETHING OUT OF THE CREATIVE DIRECTORS THAT THEY’VE WORKED FOR. BUT, YOU GET TO HEAR SO MANY STORIES OF AWFUL CREATIVE DIRECTORS.
MP: In France, being a creative director means being in charge of the creatives. But, it doesn’t seem to be the same in other countries. They don’t attach the same role to the position. For them, a creative director is in charge of an account. So, you can be a creative director without managing anybody. That seems odd.
And it’s another reason why people were surprised that you get to judge the Cannes Lions when you’re just an Art Director. Because they told me that what we call a “Senior Art Director” in France is called “Creative Supervisor”, or “Associate Creative Director” abroad.
Also, I am under the impression that when Alexander became Creative Director, he had already started to take responsibility for many things and that our former Creative Director, Alexandre Hervé, was kind of grooming him into the position and letting him grow at his pace.
What can be difficult is when you become Creative Director suddenly. For example, if the person in charge leaves the company. This is when it can turn into hell. But when there is some kind of transition, I think it goes well. Most agencies do this anyway.
TNG: PROBABLY, WHAT CAN BE DIFFICULT IS TO MANAGE PEOPLE THAT YOU’VE WORKED WITH BEFORE ?
MP: Exactly. That can be difficult. And that’s why I have a total admiration for Alexander. He managed the transition very smoothly.
And in France, there is not much of a transition when that happens. You go from creative to creative director. That is why I like how they set up creative departments in the US and the UK. It kind of look like a pyramid and the staff gets regularly promoted. That way, it doesn’t surprise anyone when you get called to the top.
TNG: SO DO YOU HAVE AN ENVY TO GO WORK IN ANOTHER COUNTRY ?
MP: I don’t know. At the moment, I absolutely enjoy my position within DDB Paris.
Of course, being at Cannes is a little bit like going to Wonderworld. You see a lot of amazing things and you want to be a part of it. But, you need to step back a little bit. The week at Cannes is not a normal week. When I think of our agency and the way it is structured, I find it great. Because, when I speak to creatives here and they ask me on what accounts I am working and I tell them that I get to work on every accounts of the agency, they freak out. And that seems to happen only in France. So, if going to another country means that I will only get to work on a single account, I am not so sure. Sure, it is cool to get promoted regularly. But the drawback is that you get to be creative only for one brand. So, I am a bit torn here.
And at DDB Paris, we get to do some international work, like our campaigns for Ubisoft. Some of these films really traveled far. And DDB is an American network, so I will definitely get opportunities to work with people from other countries.
TNG: YOU SEEM TO BE A DDB FANGIRL.
MP: Yes, I am. I love it. What they do is great. I like the culture of the network. Every year, before Cannes, the Worldwide Chief Creative Officer sends to everyone the work that was entered in the festival. Some of the work is amazing. And I like the whole philosophy of DDB as well.
TNG: I SAW YOU SPEAK TO WENDY CLARK AFTER THE PRESS CONFERENCE. DO YOU KNOW HER ?
MP: Not really. But she is in charge of the Phyllis Project. And right after the press conference, we had a lunch to launch the week of program in Cannes. She is amazing. After the lunch, she took us to a panel session. She organizes a lot of private sessions just for the people of DBB. That one was with Spike Lee. Can you imagine ?
TNG: SURE. BECAUSE HE HAS AN AGENCY IN THE NETWORK.
MP: No. I don’t think so. Does he ?
TNG: YES. I THINK THE STORY WAS THAT HE DIRECTED A COMMERCIAL WITH JORDAN. AND HE FELT THAT HE COULD BRING HIS CULTURE TO THE AD WORLD.
MP: Oh I see. I didn’t know that. You are teaching me stuff about my own company. And it makes me love it even more.
But, to come back to Wendy Clark, when we talk about female leadership, she is the real deal.
TNG: AGREED. I SAW HER AT CANNES FOR THE FIRST TIME AND I AM A NOW A BIG FAN.
MP: You too ? Yeah, she is great. I was so pleased to sit next to her during our lunch.
TNG: THAT’S THE BEAUTY OF CANNES. YOU GET ACCESS TO PEOPLE THAT YOU WOULDN’T NORMALLY HAVE. LIKE YOU, FOR EXAMPLE.
MP: I am leaving this afternoon and I am in a weird state of mind. I am almost getting the Stockholm syndrome. It is over but at the same time, I don’t want to get over it. I got the chance to experience the women mentorship and create a strong bond with all the people involved in it. I learned so much stuff. I loved the experience of the jury. I made a lot of friends this week.
I was lucky to be in a category where we had a couple of women that were absolutely great. And some men also. It is was amazing.
TNG: WAS THERE A CAMPAIGN THAT YOU SAW THIS YEAR THAT YOU THOUGHT WAS GREAT, WHETHER IT WAS THE CRAFT OR THE IDEA ?
MP: I laughed so hard watching the Coca-Cola film from Egypt. I didn’t know it before. It is so funny.
One of my big takeway from this week of judging is that you have to bring humor in your work. Because, jury members sit in a room for a week and they are all dying for a good laugh.
I get that the Cannes Lions organization is trying to get rid of all the charity stuff, because the work that our industry should be doing and celebrating is for real brands and not NGOs. I feel that there were less “sad piano” pieces this year. Of course, there will always be some. But, I feel like the work that won big was work that was fun. Maybe, because we don’t do fun stuff anymore. So, it gets noticed even more.
And I saw one operation in that vein, that was totally WTF. I forgot where it came from, probably Latin America. It was “Run For Your Balls”. Did you see it ?
TNG: THE OPERATION FROM COLOMBIA WHERE YOU DRAW PENISES WITH YOUR RUNNING MAPS ?
MP: Yes. That’s so funny. This kind of work does great in jury rooms. We should try to provoke this kind of reactions with our work. That’s what I am taking away from this. You need to create campaigns that will make people laugh. That’s a very good way to stand out. Because when you look at all the other entries, it is definitely not fun. This year, I want to go back to making fun stuff.
Melanie Pennec
Senior Art Director
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