The Croisette may glitter with film-star glamour, but for creative leaders like Russell Barrett, it’s the less visible ideas — the ones that leave an imprint on the real world — that truly shine. As Chief Creative Experience Officer at TBWA\India and a jury member for the Brand Experience & Activation Lions at Cannes Lions 2025, Barrett is helping decide which campaigns deserve the world’s most coveted advertising honours.
Cannes Lions, now in its 71st edition, has long been the north star for creative professionals. But in 2025, the spotlight has shifted sharply toward brand experiences that live beyond the screen — immersive, participatory ideas that turn brands into verbs rather than just nouns.
“It’s easy to get distracted by the slick and beautifully produced case study,” says Barrett. “What I’ve personally kept my focus on is idea, execution, how fresh the thinking is and finally the results.” In an age when AI-generated polish is just a few clicks away, his jury approach underscores a return to fundamentals. The best work, he suggests, earns its stripes by sparking real-world resonance — not just racking up awards-night applause.
Barrett has long been an advocate of brand thinking that ventures out of the comfort zone of television commercials. “Brand experience is how the brand lives outside of the TV or broadcast asset,” he says. “How does the idea live in the real or virtual world? All great brands are a combination of compelling film and immersive experiences.”
India, with its noise, chaos, and culture of constant engagement, is a playground waiting to be fully explored on this front. “India, as a market, provides us with ample opportunities to tell brand stories in the real world,” observes Barrett.
Of course, being “real world” in 2025 also means being platform-fluid, deeply participatory, and often community-led. While some marketers might still clutch their media plans like security blankets, Barrett believes Indian agencies are gradually growing bolder. “Mature creative responses go beyond the obvious,” he says. “There have been some extraordinary ideas that have come from India in the recent past and I’d imagine we will continue to explore this category going forward.”
That confidence is welcome, especially in a landscape where brands must not only perform but also feel. The Brand Experience & Activation Lions demand that work engage people beyond just impressions — that it reward attention, inspire action, or create a lasting emotional afterglow.
Barrett’s parting advice to Indian marketers and creatives? Stop using budget as an excuse. “We have often complained that our films don’t have the kind of budgets that our western colleagues enjoy,” he says. “But when it comes to experience and activation, production budget isn’t as important as impactful and immersive ideas. Embracing this challenge fully could see us lead the charge in the experience and activation categories in the years to come.”
With leaders like him shaping the benchmark, the brief for India’s creative community is clear: make the idea do the walking.
