Tony Granger, global chief creative officer of Young & Rubicam, has been selected to chair both the Cannes Lions Film and Press juries at next year’s International Advertising Festival.
Under Granger’s creative leadership, Young & Rubicam’s global network ranked third at Cannes 2010, leaping upward five slots in a single year; Y&R New York was the number one agency in the U.S. and second globally. Also in 2010, Y&R was named Network of the Year by the Art Directors Club, New York Festivals and the London International Awards.
Since arriving at Y&R in 2008, Granger has attracted top drawer creative talent, fully integrated digital into the agency, and built a global creativity community in both spirit and practice. This is reflected in notable work for clients like Virgin Atlantic, Land Rover, LG and Telefonica.
“Young & Rubicam’s rising up the agency ranks in the last couple of years is a testament to Tony’s incredible talent, his belief in the power of creativity and brilliant leadership,” said Terry Savage, chairman of the Cannes Ad Fest.
Granger said of his being named chair of the Film and Press juries, “This is a great honor. Cannes Lions is the most prestigious global awards show in our industry–it gives us the chance to highlight what is possible while inspiring us to leap forward. It’s the celebration of creativity in all forms of communication, and I’m excited to be a part of it.”
Before joining Y&R, Granger spent five years at Saatchi & Saatchi. There, too, he led the agency’s creative transformation. Saatchi became the top creative agency in the U.S., and International Agency of the Year at both the Cannes and the Clio Festivals. He led a similar renaissance at Bozell New York, where the shop catapulted to best in the U.S. and third best at Cannes in 2002. Granger began his career in his native South Africa, where he led TBWAHunt Lascaris.
The 58th Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival is slated for June 19-25, 2011 in Cannes, France.
SAG-AFTRA Calls For A Strike Against “League of Legends”
"League of Legends" is caught in the middle of a dispute between Hollywood's actors union and an audio company that provides voiceover services for the blockbuster online multiplayer game.
The Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists called a strike against "League of Legends" on Tuesday, arguing that Formosa Interactive attempted to get around the ongoing video game strike by hiring non-union actors to work on an unrelated title.
Formosa tried to "cancel" the unnamed video game, which was covered by the strike, shortly after the start of the work stoppage, SAG-AFTRA said. The union said when Formosa learned it could not cancel the game, the company "secretly transferred the game to a shell company and sent out casting notices for 'non-union' talent only." In response, the union's interactive negotiating committee voted unanimously to file an unfair labor practice charge against the company with the National Labor Relations Board and to call a strike against "League of Legends" as part of that charge.
"League of Legends" is one of Formosa's most well-known projects. The company provides voiceover services for the game, according to SAG-AFTRA.
SAG-AFTRA has accused Formosa of interfering with protections that allow performers to form or join a union and prevent those performers from being discriminated against — a move the union called "egregious violations of core tenets of labor law."
Formosa did not immediately respond to a request for comment. "League of Legends" developer Riot Games said that the company "has nothing to do" with the union's complaint.
"We want to be clear: Since becoming a union project five years ago, 'League of Legends' has only asked Formosa to engage with union... Read More