JWT Shanghai & MSU students hack the Cannes jury room to hit up chief creative officers for jobs
It’s almost impossible for a fresh grad to get the attention of the world’s top Chief Creative Officers. Except when they’re locked in a room together, looking at case videos all day.
To help the current crop of grads from the Michigan State University’s Department of Advertising & PR get a leap start on their careers, J. Walter Thompson Shanghai packaged the students’ elevator-pitch videos as a Cannes Lions case video.
“Young, new talents never fail to excite us – especially the undiscovered ones. And we know how hard it is for fresh grads to land a great job. This was a great way to let the students express their creativity, and get in front of the right people,” said Norman Tan, North Asia Chief Creative Officer, China Chairman.
J. Walter Thompson Shanghai’s ECD, Carlos Camacho, served as a mentor to a group of MSU students who took part in an exchange program in China earlier this year. As he got to know them, talk eventually turned to the challenges of the job hunt. So Camacho and this team came up with an idea that could help the MSU students: hijack the Cannes jury room.
Together with Henry Brimmer and Ross Chowles, MSU Professors of Practice in the Creative Track, Camacho’s team launched the CVCV (“Case Video Curriculum Vitae”) campaign, calling for students to submit their one-minute elevator pitch. JWT Shanghai picked the best and created a Cannes Lions case video, which they entered into the Direct, Media and Promo & Activation categories – winning the students the time and attention of dozens of senior global creatives serving jury duty.
“What I loved about this project is that it made the students think about how to market themselves rather than just letting their output speak for them. I think every student should make a ‘sell yourself’ video,” said MSU’s Chowles,
We try to foster a risk-taking spirit among our students. Creativity can be so very infectious!” added Brimmer.
“Regardless of the result in Cannes, if this idea helps a MSU student to get a job it would be the best reward,” said Camacho.