Axe wins again at Cannes

The campaign, which builds on the successful foundations set in 2006, was awarded two Gold Lions, one in the radio category for "Answering Machine" and another in the press category for the "Sticker" campaign, as well as a Bronze Lion in the press category for its print campaign.

The three television commercials, "Magician", "Goldfish" and "Bokdrolspoeg", were also shortlisted in the film category.

"We're incredibly proud of this campaign, for once again featuring so prominently at Cannes," say Lowe Bull's Joburg MD, Ivan Moroke. "It's a huge achievement for any campaign to be recognised, but to be recognised two years on the trot is phenomenal."

In 2006, the Axe GAG campaign brought home three Lions, one gold (again, for the radio campaign), one silver (for the press campaign) and one bronze (for the "Coinage" TV spot).

In an unusual approach to a television campaign, each spot was produced and directed by a different production company:

- "Magician" was directed by Clive Will, from Sanga Films
- "Goldfish" was directed by Brent Harris, from Rabbit/Egg Films
- "Bokdrolspoeg" was directed by Slim, from Freshwater Films

Traditionally, one director would shoot an entire campaign to maintain consistency across the various spots.

"The creative team wanted to bring a different style and feel to each spot, to get a really authentic 'home/youtube' video style," explains Moroke.

Each spot was also shot in a different country – "Magician" in Malaysia, "Goldfish" in the USA and "Bokdrolspoeg" in South Africa – in a bid to give the campaign a global feel.

Despite not bringing home a Lion in the film category, the creative teams behind the three spots remain enormously proud of their work, and the teams that produced them.