Cannes 2010: Ogilvy Rings a silver Bell in Film; narrow miss for LMN

Ogilvy's Ring the Bell films have won a Silver Lion. The jury president calls it a genius in simplicity. Find out more

It was face-saving for India to have won a silver in the Film Lions category. Of the five shortlists from India, Ogilvy's Ring the Bell films – Bus Driver and Software Engineer – for Breakthrough Trust bagged a Silver Campaign Lion.

Mark Tutssel, chief creative officer, Leo Burnett Worldwide, describes the Ring the Bell campaign as a genius in simplicity, the film which activated a nation with a simple solution such as ringing the bell. He says, "It scored on both film-making and storytelling."

The other two shortlisted entries were LMN's Bush Man campaign and Fevicol's golden jubilee celebration film.

It is learnt that LMN was a serious contender for a bronze, but missed by an inch at the final stage. Tutssel found the campaign to be a fantastic visual drama, coupled with simple storytelling; but it failed to catch the imagination of many jury members. Apparently, several jury members found the humour to be over the top.

Hopes were also high on the Fevicol film; but to no avail. Piyush Pandey, executive chairperson, Ogilvy India, says, "I am disappointed that a campaign like Fevicol did not win, though it was beautifully done. But at the same time, I am not disappointed, because this keeps happening. We could see what happened to Zoozoos."

So far, India has won 17 metals, which includes three gold, seven silver and seven bronze awards. Compared to a country like Brazil, which has won 56 Lions this year, India still has far to go. India and Brazil are often compared at international forums for the similarities that exist in both the markets.

In films, a total of 100 Lions were awarded, including 14 gold, 24 silver and 61 bronze.

This year, the highlight for the Films jury was to look for a future idea; but the Grand Prix winner turned out to be a classic film that started off as a simple television commercial, but was later moved to other screens. The Old Spice film by W+K, Portland won the Grand Prix this year.

Tutssel comments, "The campaign turned Old Spice into a new spice. It transformed human behaviour and reignited a sleeping brand."

Instead of showing girls jumping on a man for the deodorant he uses, the film showed women how their lives could change if they were with a man who used Old Spice body wash, instead of women's body wash.

The other two contenders for the Grand Prix were Johnnie Walker's film, 'The Man Who Walked Around The World' and Gatorade's Replay film.

The Man Who Walked Around The World was a six-minute online film, which was filmed entirely in one shot, and told the story of the brand in detail. The Replay campaign – which also won a Grand Prix in Promo and PR – evoked the emotions of the 40-plus generation, making them recall their school days. It was a campaign that was not restricted only to the screen; but went on-ground to make people participate.

The jury remarked, "If Old Spice stood out for being classic, Gatorade was the future; while Johnnie Walker was a mix of both." They looked at big, changing ideas, craft and words that amplified to richness.