After a two-year absence, Cannes Lions returned to the Croisette in 2022 with the advertising industry eager to reconnect, celebrate creativity and take stock of a rapidly changing media landscape.
For anyone working in film and TV production, there was plenty to think about. The way brands communicate was changing, audiences were becoming harder to hold, and the traditional boundaries between advertising, entertainment and content were increasingly blurred.
But perhaps the biggest question for production companies wasn’t how to make the next great ad. It was how to make great work matter in a world where brands need more content, more versions, more channels and more reasons for people to pay attention.
The days when production could be judged primarily on the quality of a single, beautifully crafted 30-second television commercial are behind us. Craft still matters enormously, but it now operates within a much more complex set of demands.
Looking back at the themes shaping the industry around Cannes Lions 2022, three shifts stand out — and each has important implications for Australian brands, agencies and production companies.
1. Film production is moving from campaign execution to creative partnership
For a long time, production was brought into the process after the big idea had been developed. The agency created the campaign, the client approved it, and the production company was tasked with bringing it to life.
That model still has its place, but it doesn’t reflect the full value production can offer today.
As campaigns become more complex and audiences consume content across an expanding range of platforms, production expertise can no longer be confined to the shoot itself. Decisions about format, storytelling, locations, casting, visual language and post-production can fundamentally influence how effective a campaign becomes.
The earlier production is involved, the more opportunity there is to shape those decisions creatively and commercially.
A director might identify a more compelling way to tell the story. A producer might find a way to build multiple deliverables into the original production plan without compromising the hero film. A production team might recognise that an idea designed for television won’t translate naturally to social platforms — and suggest an approach that will.
These aren’t simply production considerations. They’re creative considerations.
For Australian advertisers, this presents an opportunity to rethink the relationship between agency and production company. Rather than treating production as the final step in the creative process, brands can benefit from bringing production expertise into the conversation much earlier.
The result isn’t necessarily a bigger production. It’s a smarter one, with more opportunities to make the creative idea work harder.
2. The challenge isn’t making more content. It’s making content worth watching.
By 2022, the growth of social video, streaming platforms and digital media had already changed the expectations placed on brands.
A single campaign could require a television commercial, online video, vertical edits, social cutdowns, stills and a range of platform-specific assets. The demand for content was growing, and with it came pressure on production budgets, timelines and resources.
But there’s a danger in responding to that demand by simply producing more.
Audiences don’t owe brands their attention. They can skip an ad, scroll past a post or move on to another piece of content in seconds. In that environment, the ability to produce a high volume of assets means little if those assets fail to connect.
This is where the craft of film and television production becomes even more important.
Strong storytelling, considered casting, distinctive cinematography, sound design, editing and performance remain powerful tools for capturing attention. The difference is that these skills must now be applied across a wider range of formats and viewing environments.
A story that works beautifully on a large television screen may need a different opening, pace or visual composition to work on a mobile phone. A social-first execution may need to establish its premise immediately, while a longer-form piece has more room to develop character, atmosphere and emotion.
The answer isn’t to abandon traditional production values in favour of content that is simply quick and cheap to make. Nor is it to apply the same production formula to every channel.
It’s to understand what makes each format work and then bring the right level of craft to it.
For Australian production companies, that means combining the discipline of traditional film-making with a more flexible approach to content creation. The objective should be to create work that earns attention, not merely work that fills a content calendar.
3. Technology is changing production, but creativity remains the differentiator
Technology has always influenced the way films and television commercials are made. From advances in cameras and digital post-production to virtual production techniques and increasingly sophisticated visual effects, new tools continually expand what is possible.
The conversations surrounding Cannes Lions 2022 reflected an industry already navigating significant technological change, including the growing role of data, automation and new digital environments in creative work.
For production, the opportunity is to use technology to solve problems, improve workflows and expand creative possibilities — rather than adopting new tools simply because they’re available.
Better production technology can give directors greater control, help teams work more efficiently and make previously impractical ideas achievable. Advances in post-production can also provide greater flexibility when adapting work for different formats, markets and audiences.
But technology alone doesn’t make a piece of film-making compelling.
A technically flawless commercial can still be forgettable. An impressive visual effect can still fail to serve the story. And a production process that saves time or money isn’t necessarily delivering greater creative value.
The real advantage comes when technology supports a clear creative ambition.
That requires production companies to remain curious about emerging tools while protecting the skills that make their work distinctive: creative problem-solving, storytelling, collaboration and an understanding of how images and sound can make people feel something.
For Australian businesses operating in a competitive international market, this balance is particularly important. Access to production technology is becoming more widespread, but the ability to use it in service of a genuinely strong idea remains a meaningful point of difference.
What this means for Australian brands and production companies
Cannes Lions has always been a celebration of creativity, but the industry returning to the Croisette in 2022 was facing a broader challenge: how to create work that remains distinctive as the number of platforms, formats and competing messages continues to grow.
For Australian brands, agencies and production companies, the opportunity is to rethink what great production looks like in this new environment.
It means involving production partners earlier, rather than treating them solely as suppliers tasked with executing an approved concept.
It means planning for different audiences and platforms from the outset, without losing sight of the central creative idea.
And it means embracing new technology while recognising that tools, workflows and production efficiencies are only valuable when they help deliver better work.
There will always be a place for the beautifully crafted television commercial. Great film-making can create an emotional connection, establish a brand’s identity and leave a lasting impression in ways few other formats can match.
But the future of production isn’t simply about making that commercial better. It’s about understanding how film-making can contribute to a broader creative idea, how stories can travel across different environments, and how production expertise can help brands make more meaningful connections with their audiences.
The industry doesn’t need to choose between craft and efficiency, or between traditional film-making and new forms of content. It needs to understand how to bring them together.
Ultimately, technology will continue to change how we make things. Platforms will come and go, audience behaviours will evolve, and production models will adapt.
But the fundamentals remain the same: a strong idea, well told, with the right people bringing it to life.
Because the future of film and TV production won’t be determined by who can make the most content. It will be determined by who can make content worth remembering.
