Saturday

There were half the amount of sessions today and half the amount of people. It was sad to see the festival come to an end. As Adweek said in one of their Instagram posts, today was all about shopping for souvenirs and waiting for the closing Gala.

As soon as I arrived in Cannes, I figured I should be productive and jumped into a lecture without really knowing what it was about. The lecture was called "How Risk-Taking Ads Helped Justin Trudeau Become Prime Minister." The person who spoke was David Rosenberg from the agency Bensimon Byrne. David and his agency were responsible for JT's campaign during his running for Prime Minister of Canada. He was able to create ads that took JT from 3rd place to 1st. His ads were based off of positive politics, so it's really cool that he ended up winning. I loved seeing how the agency took the competitors ads' against JT and spun them around to bring him back on top. This lecture was awesome and one of my favorite ones I went to. The speaker was very good and did a great job explaining the entire campaign process. If Trump becomes President, I am moving to Canada without a doubt. #JustinTrudeauForPrez #RealChange

I got my last street panini of the week and made my way into town for some shopping before the next lecture. Cannes has a lot of expensive stores and a lot of top designers. I tried to weave my way around those are find the hidden gems of Cannes. There was one store called Pull and Bear that was super cute and funky and super cheap. I got a couple things but would definitely go back and buy the entire store.

I made it back to the Palais in time for the last lecture of the festival, "The Cannes LionHeart Award Interview with Blake Mycoskie." Blake is the founder of the company TOMS, and it was exciting to get to hear him speak. He talked about how he started and where they are headed now. This is TOMS' 10th year of existence, and they keep doing bigger and better things.

I went home after to take a nap before coming back to Cannes for the closing Gala. I napped for about an hour, worked on some homework, and ate dinner. My dinner was made up of things I could find in my room: peanut butter, a cookie, and a Reese's. It was pretty nasty.

My friend and I made our way back to the train station all dressed up to see that the train station was CLOSED!! We were very confused and weren't sure why the doors were all locked up. Eventually, we found out that the side of the station was open and you could get to the train that way. We felt pretty dumb.

When we got to Cannes, I bought a banana from a street vendor person because I felt like I needed some kind of nutrients. We waited around for the Gala, and soon discovered that students weren't allowed in. So there went our plans for the night! So we wasted about 2 hours in Cannes but I got a banana so it felt kind of worth it.

We came back to JLP on the last train and went to a club that some friends told us about. I have been in JLP for 2 weeks and have never seen a club until now. Why was this kept a secret from me?? Anyway, clubbing is definitely not my thing. The place was dark and foggy and loud with super annoying lasers and strobes. There were a lot of creepy older men but also a lot of kids that looked like they were 16. It was pretty weird.

We all came back to the residence and hung out in a friend's room for a while and talked. Those are always the most fun of times. I ate some more chocolate before I went to bed because why not (I hate myself) and then passed out around 4am.

It's crazy that the festival has come and gone so quickly. But at the same time it feels like it lasted about a month. Cannes Lions is one of the coolest experiences I've ever had. Every person you come across or meet has an intriguing story and is at the festival for a reason. It's amazing to be surrounded by such creative and successful people. I hope I will be able to make it back to the festival another year!