The 2024 Irish Young Lions competition officially kicked off yesterday attracting over 220 industry professionals to the Light House Cinema. The highly anticipated launch event featured insightful presentations from Cannes Lions, plus a dynamic panel discussion with valuable contributions from the category sponsors.
Conor Stewart, Senior Development Advisor for the Commercial Creative Sector, Enterprise Ireland, kicked off the event with an introduction to their involvement in the programme this year.
Speaking on this partnership Conor O’Donovan, Head of Global Marketing Communications at Enterprise Ireland said “Enterprise Ireland is delighted to support the IAPI Young Lions Competition which gives emerging Irish creative talent the chance to showcase their skills on an international stage. The Creative Industries account for almost 10% of national employment and the advertising sector generates over €1.2bn for the Irish economy. We look forward to working the sector to support their internationalisation, promoting Irish creative services excellence to international partners and collaborating on the implementation of the Digital Creative Industries Roadmap, recently published by Government”.
Charley Stoney added, "This event marks the beginning of our journey with Enterprise Ireland who have dedicated resource to mobilise the Irish Commercial Creativity and Communications industry. With the publication this week of the Creative Industries Roadmap, there has never been a better time to have their support and resources behind us. IAPI and Enterprise Ireland want to build better Connections, further Capability and increased Confidence within the industry. I am so proud to continue to support all those that represent us at an international level as Team Ireland and especially highly talented and ambitious Young Lions.”
The event also featured a keynote presentation by Orla Kinsella, Awards Senior Product and Research Manager, LIONS Advisory taking the audience on a deep dive of the Cannes Lions 2023 Creativity Digest looking at emerging trends and features of last year’s winning work. Orla shared an insightful analysis with a comprehensive understanding of the current landscape featuring some incredible winning work.
Following the presentations, a panel discussion featuring category sponsors – Jimi McGrath, CEO, Droga5 Dublin; Amy Tumelty, Head of Social Media, Aer Lingus; Lorcan Hanlon, Chief Commercial & Revenue Officer, The Business Post; Sinead Gill, PR & Communications Manager, Smurfit Kappa and IAPI’s Programme Director, Katherine Ryan provided attendees with exclusive insights into the details of the competition.
Moderated by Charley Stoney, CEO of IAPI (Institute of Advertising Practitioners in Ireland), the panel delved into the nuances of this year's competition, offering tips for crafting compelling entries and shedding light on the elements that will catch the judges' eye.
The category sponsors, representing diverse sectors of the industry, echoed their commitment to fostering creativity and excellence. Speaking on their involvement this year; Amy Tumelty, Head of Social Media, Aer Lingus said, “The Young Lions competition gives young creatives in Ireland an opportunity to share their work on a global stage. We are very much looking forward to witnessing the talent of the next generation of creative leaders at the competition in February, and to have the privilege of bringing them to the Cannes Lions Festival in June.”
Max Brady, Executive Producer, Pull the Trigger said- “As always, Pull The Trigger are excited and proud to be part of IAPI’s Cannes Young Lions. The competition is always a joyous event in our year. Seeing the passion and creativity of the younger community in our industry is inspiring and encouraging. Every year our young creatives turn in fabulous work, that makes us think and consider new lenses applied to communication issues. I want to thank Katherine, Shreesha, Charley and all the IAPI team for continuing to support the competition and our involvement. Good luck to all entrants - we look forward to your work.”
For detailed information on the 2024 Cannes Young Lions competition, including entry guidelines, registration, and deadlines, register here.
For more queries on the competitions this year, get in touch with shreesha@iapi.com
