Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity has announced the winners of the 2023 US Young Lions competition. VMLY&R Commerce US Media Manager Marina Budi and Associate Media Planner Lauren Waldrop placed 3rd in the Media category for their “So Long Side Hustles” campaign.
“This was our second time entering the Cannes Young Lions competition together and when we received the email saying we were finalists we were nothing less than thrilled! We pulled together a media plan we were both proud of and had a personal connection to, which made our presentation extremely strong,” commented Marina Budi on the win. “We were proud to represent VMLY&R Commerce in the media category, which was filled with some tough competitors.”
Lauren Waldrop added, “It was such a great opportunity to compete at a national level and represent the agency in New York. The media category was stacked with talented individuals full of brilliant ideas. Marina and I are thrilled to have placed in this year's Young Lions, our second time competing as a team.”
This year’s entrants were challenged to develop a creative and innovative campaign in their respective categories on behalf of the 2023 Young Lions official charity partner, The Creative Ladder. The organization, founded by Ryan Reynolds, is dedicated to making creative careers more accessible and inclusive for young people. Participants were tasked with helping the nonprofit address the awareness gap surrounding creative careers.
VMLY&R Commerce US finalists also included Strategist Jackie Shor and Strategist & Partnerships Specialist Samantha Brotman in the PR category.
View the full list of winners here.