10262: DDB On Bad Judges & Bad Judgment.

DDB Worldwide Chief Creative Officer Amir Kassaei accused WPP judges of tactical voting at Cannes Lions 59th International Festival of Creativity and declared, “I have been notified by no fewer than 12 jury members that people from other holding companies this week were briefed to kill Omnicom, especially BBDO, DDB and TBWA, this is a fact.” Kassaei added, “This is not about being a bad loser, or even supporting Omnicom, this is about the integrity and responsibility of the Cannes Lions Festival as a beacon of excellence around the world.” Now it’s been revealed that DDB created a fake beer brand and campaign to promote itself at Cannes. “The idea was born around the fact that we said we should use Cannes as a platform not only to celebrate and to have a good time but to prove to the target group who's attending the Cannes festival—the most important people in the advertising [industry]—how the creativity of DDB can build a brand and shape a market,” said Kassaei. “Our job is around creating a relevant truth and delivering it in a fresh way so people care about it … [We chose] a beer brand because we wanted to build a lifestyle brand that is matching to the whole environment of Cannes and the way people are behaving themselves during the week.” Is this guy a total douche bag or what? The most outrageous part is, the fake work is contrived crap. Bill Bernbach must be spinning in his grave.