Lego
Here it is, the Grand Prix winner for the Print category at Cannes. What are your thoughts? I think its a good idea, but is it worth the Grand Prix?
Agency: FCB, South Africa.
Posted in Print 
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June 22nd, 2006 at 7:42 am
To be honest: Took me a little be longer to get the message. Good idea, though. Is it worth the Grand Prix? As a member of the Out - Of -Home section I wud say yes. It´s funky and irritating. And somebody has to win… or u got any better ads?
June 22nd, 2006 at 8:06 am
Well… Not that great…
June 22nd, 2006 at 8:40 am
It’s kinda hard not to do wonderful work for Lego.. it’s a great product. The ad is simple, clever… sure why not. If the Gustav Klimt painting can sell for $135 mill, why shouldn’t a Lego win at Cannes?
June 22nd, 2006 at 8:49 am
It took me a while to figure out what it’s supposed to be: a submarine? Who exactly is the target? I’d like to see the ads that lost to this one.
June 22nd, 2006 at 8:57 am
you need a lot of imagination to see anything here, just like lego itself. represents the product perfectly… maybe that’s why it won
June 22nd, 2006 at 9:56 am
A submarine. Okay…
I’ve got a LOT of Leggo experience, and, as a hardcore user, I have to say this falls a little short.
All it needs is a nudge, a clue. This isn’t “figure out the hidden meaning,” after all. It’s advertising. This ad is on the verge of greatness, but it’s asking too much, IMO.
June 22nd, 2006 at 9:59 am
Couldn’t this just be “the start of something”? Every Lego project begins with a single brick, after all…
June 22nd, 2006 at 10:12 am
“Imagine”
But imagine what? I didn’t get the submarine reference at all. All I saw was a few white blocks on a large blue board. Now I like the idea that this is the start of something, but I think you need a little more than a few block.
However, it’s very appealing visually, and I think that is why it won.
June 22nd, 2006 at 11:41 am
“Couldn’t this just be “the start of somethingâ€? Every Lego project begins with a single brick, after all…”
Is that two bricks in the ad? Just one of the “standard” bricks would have been nice.
June 22nd, 2006 at 1:16 pm
did this deserve the grand prix? not at all. btw, does anyone ever see these award winning toy ads in real life?
June 22nd, 2006 at 1:48 pm
I saw the submarine right away. I think it is wonderful.
When I looked at this ad I immediately envisioned myself building a war ship, a tanker and a small tropical island with Tom Hanks on it.
I sure do miss Lego.
June 22nd, 2006 at 2:24 pm
Is it really a submarine? My first thought was that it was the Loch Ness monster.
June 22nd, 2006 at 5:01 pm
a submarine you say?
My first thought was Nessy the Loch Ness Monster… That way imagine makes much more sense imho. But heck, great art can be looked at from different perspectives ‘they’ always say :).
June 22nd, 2006 at 9:47 pm
I’m with lars and mike on interpretation, but the discussion of the ad here really makes a stronger case for the ad than it does on its own.
June 22nd, 2006 at 10:31 pm
if its the loch ness monster imitating the famous photo, the shadow is in the wrong direction. not a big mistake, but if its winning the gp it should be spot on.
June 22nd, 2006 at 10:40 pm
You can check out all the other winning print ads here:
http://www.canneslions.com
June 23rd, 2006 at 1:00 am
i more like the levi’s ad (slim jean) better than this, to be grand prix winner… this smart and simple but not too great (i think).. if u compare with levi’s ad…
June 23rd, 2006 at 3:22 am
What I really like about the ad is the fact that it can be anything. It can be a submarine. But it also can be anything else. It’s exactly what Lego is - anything you have in mind. Great piece.
June 23rd, 2006 at 5:45 am
Its not spot on enough to win the Grand Prix.
June 23rd, 2006 at 9:29 am
well, it also took me a while to get the message but the fact is that, as RM says, all the discussion around it justifies its value. I think they went for a generic picture, in a way that it would have millions of interpretations. Suggestion of any kind would blow it right away. The fun in this ad is imagining what can it be behind those two bricks. That’s why we’re still here talking about it.
Then again, I’m with Frederik, I think gp is a little bit too much for this. Its a great ad though.
June 23rd, 2006 at 9:52 am
I still have my giant wooden Lego box filled with thousands of pieces. I love Lego. Lego is a friend of mine. But this, sir, is no Grand Prix winner.
Sure, it’s simple and graphic. It’s also simplistic and gratuitous.
The best print ad on earth this year? If so, I weep for our industry.
June 23rd, 2006 at 10:20 am
Lego… oh, the memories.
Of course it’s a submarine.
The ad is great. And I’m sure it’s not the graphical and compositional aspect that made it the winning entry.
Imagine a kid building the sub. He’ll wave it around tipping it up and down doing the “blubb-blubb”-sounds, to have the it submerge and then reappear above surface.
The thought to actually submerge the sub into a solid object by just having the periscope show, is nothing short of brilliant.
But it may be just a bit TOO clever.
June 23rd, 2006 at 11:23 am
Bob–amen
June 23rd, 2006 at 3:45 pm
I think it’s genius. Extravagant lego structures are pretty ubiquitous so to say so much with so little is great. Anyone could have given you the image of a submarine but with 2 blocks and a grid, it truly calls you to ‘imagine.’
June 24th, 2006 at 12:12 am
I wonder if Cannes judges get to read the brief or the goal of the print ad before they do judging. I think this Lego thing is good but it’s still not good enough the target market especially kids.
If I were a kid, I’d be staring at this and thinking what in the world is it suppose to be. Sure if I let imagination run wid I’d just tell my parents, “Hey! Look a..” and the parents goes into space.
I think it might’ve been awarded at Cannes for a reason but we just don’t know why.
June 24th, 2006 at 4:55 am
Well, thats the point, Lego is all about imagination, enhance creativity and to create. I reckon its not that simple to follow, but sometimes leaving it for the viewer to digest the meaning is another way to get the brand accross.
Makes sense?
June 26th, 2006 at 4:00 pm
David Droga, president of the press jury told the audience at the Cannes Awards that they looked for ads that we’re as interactive like cyber. Therefore i think they chose Lego because you have to search a bit and use your imagination to get the picture.
Other candidates for the Grand Priw were 42Below, Kodak, Levi’s and Mapa Spontex.
June 29th, 2006 at 8:05 am
Guys… cant you see? you are all discussing what that thing is… thats whats all about!!!!! imagination, everyone has its own idea, Nessy, submarine or whatever… what matters is our imagination
June 29th, 2006 at 12:15 pm
[...] Everybody’s blogging on Cannes. Or at least they were, at one point. Now the comments are beginning to pile up. Beyond Madison Avenue, Advertising/Design Goodness both with healthy Cannes-related discussions. Mostly, people are questioning the validity of the show…and whether the Lego ad deserved the Press Grand Prix. [...]
November 9th, 2006 at 6:24 pm
[...] There’s a pretty substantial debate running on the advertising/design goodness blog about the worthiness of this year’s print grand prix at Cannes for lego. What do you think? Grand Prix worthy? [...]