CannesLions2018–Everythingcannes,nothingmust
Where's the way to the beach, please? The advertising spectacle Cannes Lions Festival Of Creativity once again took place in 2018 around the famous Croisette - where Cary Grant and Grace Kelly once said goodnight in Hitchcock's thriller "To Catch A Thief" and where stars and starlets climb the steps of the Festival Palais every year during the "Festival De Cannes." We went there and got a firsthand look at the creative hustle and bustle on the Côte d'Azur.
Google Beach - Networking under the French Sun
At Google Beach, we not only enjoyed the sun and delicious drinks, but we also met people from all over the world and had a little chat with them. Networking on the beach, to be honest, isn't all that bad. In addition, we were able to try out various social media installations.
Google Demo Day
Thanks to our Google contacts, we received an exclusive invitation to Google Demo Day to listen to a private lecture by Dan Kaufmann, General Manager of Google ATAP (Advanced Technology and Projects). He talked about how to make the statements of Artificial Intelligence (AI) smart without having to answer a whole catalog of questions in advance.
Google's Hot Stuff
We also got to try out Google's latest "hot stuff." We found gesture control through radar technology particularly interesting. Compared to optical methods like Kinect, it offers a significant advantage, as the radar can detect the entire space around it, providing us with great possibilities for user interaction. However, we'll all have to wait a bit longer, as the technology is still in development. Google Spotlight Stories are also pretty cool. They focus on virtual reality storytelling, where artists and technologists create stories for 360° mobile devices, mobile virtual reality, and VR headsets.
Google Lens
The recently launched app Google Lens really caught our attention. After opening the application, users can focus on products, objects, or even animals, and by clicking on the display, Google results appear showing the product, similar items, or the breed of the animal. We think it's great. This way, you'll never have to ask strangers where they bought their dress or shoes again. However, you might come across as a creepy stalker randomly photographing strangers...
Facebook Beach
Of course, Facebook couldn't be missing in Cannes. At the beach of the social media giant, we got to see a very special installation. Instagram's “Storyscape” by British artist and designer Es Devlin showcases an immersive cinematic installation where small stories are projected onto a cylinder via projection mapping, surrounding the user. Her installation describes the democratization of storytelling.
What Else Happened...
Unexpected and unplanned, the coolest things often happen... For example, we accidentally stumbled upon a private gig by James Bay and got to try free parasailing - sky is indeed not the limit...
