In today's media landscape, the portrayal of male success is heavily stereotyped, often emphasizing appearances, possessions, and traditional markers of achievement. New generations of men have a different definition of success and it’s up to the advertising industry to keep up with the progress. Our task is to offer young men a healthier representation of male success in advertising.

Research reveals that young men feel disconnected from the current portrayals of success in advertising. We decided not to target young men individually as we believe that their feelings are merely a symptom of a larger industry problem that cannot be solved through a single campaign. Instead, we decided to challenge the advertising industry itself to try to provoke a long term systematic change.

Male success in advertising can be reimagined. We’ll prove it by reimagining the most iconic success symbol of the industry: the Cannes Lion itself. The Unstereotype Alliance will become a partner of a brand new category for a reimagined portrayal of masculinity in advertising. Cannes Sea Lion is there to celebrate men whose ambitions differ from becoming the king of the jungle, yet are just as valid. We celebrate the Sea Lions who are happy doing their own thing. The entry fees help fund the Unstereotype Alliance for future media campaigns and initiatives.

In addition to the valuable data provided to us in a brief as through the New Macho Study, we conducted our own field research right at the Cannes Lions Festival. The answers of industry professionals suggest that the addition of a healthy male representation focused category would be beneficial for implementing changes within the advertising industry.

We decided not to target men. Their feelings are merely a symptom of a systematic problem that cannot be solved through a single campaign. Instead, we challenge the advertising industry itself to provoke systematic change. The strategy centers on leveraging the Cannes Lions, the industry's most influential event.

The Cannes Sea Lion introduction generates buzz and opens the long-overdue conversation. We make the industry pledge focus on male representation and we use the most prestigious award as a motivation to do better.

1)High-Impact Launch: Announce the new award category at Cannes Lions to generate immediate media attention.

2)Industry Engagement: Encourage advertisers to participate in the bettering of the industry’s work.

3)Sustained Conversation: Use the buzz to spark ongoing discussions about male representation in advertising.

4)Funding: Allocate entry fees from the new award to fund the Unstereotype Alliance’s future initiatives, ensuring support for projects promoting diverse portrayals of masculinity.

Phase 1: Announcement

The new Cannes Sea Lion award category will be announced before the Cannes Lions Festival, leveraging the event's prestige and media reach to create immediate buzz and awareness.

Phase 2: Campaign Rollout

A multi-channel media and PR campaign will launch, including press releases, social media promotions, and industry talks, to explain the award's significance and encourage participation. Influential industry leaders and Lion winners will be engaged to endorse the initiative.

Phase 3: Award Ceremony

During the Cannes Lions Festival awards ceremony, we will introduce the first Sea Lion award winners, highlighting their innovative and stereotype-breaking work.

Phase 4: Ongoing Support

Post-festival, the initiative will maintain momentum thanks to the entry fees funding for the ongoing efforts by the Unstereotype Alliance, ensuring sustained impact on the portrayal of masculinity in advertising. We hope for the Sea Lions to become a long term addition to the Cannes Lions universe.