Terry Savage, chairman of Cannes Lions, will leave the Festival following the 2018 event. Savage has been associated with the Lions for 33 years, initially as the representative for Australia, then as CEO, and for the last decade as chairman.
Savage said, “Creativity has been central to everything I believe in and having spent a large part of my career involved with Lions I leave in the knowledge that creativity in all of its varied forms will continue to thrive and be centre stage at Cannes Lions. The Festival has always evolved, and I am certain it will continue to evolve as the industry changes, and thrive as it has for 65 years.”
He continued, “Post Cannes, through the business opportunities I have before me, I will continue to ensure that the profound commercial and social impact of creativity takes a preeminent place in organizations around the world, and look forward to helping others achieve a like-minded position.”
Philip Thomas, CEO of Ascential Events, commented, “Terry has been a huge figure in the history of Cannes Lions for decades – those who know him will know he is a big personality with a big passion for creativity and for the Festival he has worked on for so long. He leaves with our best wishes for the future, and we look forward to working with him as closely as ever in the run up to the 2018 event.”
First-Time Feature Directors Make Major Splash At AFI Fest, Generate Oscar Buzz
Two first-time feature directors who are generating Oscar buzz this awards season were front and center this past weekend at AFI Fest in Hollywood. Rachel Morrison, who made history as the first woman nominated for a Best Cinematography Oscar---on the strength of Mudbound in 2018--brought her feature directorial debut, The Fire Inside (Amazon MGM Studios), to the festival on Sunday (10/27), and shared insights into the film during a conversation session immediately following the screening. This came a day after William Goldenberg, an Oscar-winning editor for Argo in 2013, had his initial foray into feature directing, Unstoppable (Amazon MGM Studios), showcased at the AFI proceedings. He too spoke after the screening during a panel discussion. The Fire Inside--which made its world premiere at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival--tells the story of Claressa “T-Rex” Shields (portrayed by Ryan Destiny), a Black boxer from Flint, Mich., who trained to become the first woman in U.S. history to win an Olympic Gold Medal in the sport. She achieved this feat--with the help of coach Jason Crutchfield (Brian Tyree Henry)--only to find that her victory at the Summer Games came with relatively little fanfare and no endorsement deals. So much for the hope that the historic accomplishment would be a ticket out of socioeconomic purgatory for Shields and her family. It seemed like yet another setback in a cycle of adversity throughout Shields’ life but she persevered, going on to win her second Gold Medal at the next Olympics and becoming a champion for gender equality and equitable pay for women in sports. Shields has served as a source of inspiration for woman athletes worldwide--as well as to the community of... Read More