The Palais des Festivals will open its doors for the 73rd edition of the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity on 22 June.

With global disruptions like the war and industry-wide changes such as major consolidations, many believe participation levels could dip this year.

The festival is ready to tackle that and has a record number of ‘festival partners,’ according to Simon Cook, CEO, Lions.

“Over the last few years, we have broadened our offering to incorporate sector-specific elements that serve the industry ecosystem. As a result, we are seeing engagement with the festival grow. Our new 'CMO Forum' has seen a large number of sign-ups, and we have more festival partners than ever before. Given the seismic shifts and mass disruption we’re witnessing – it's natural that this will have an impact on the industry at large, and on the institutions that serve it,” he stated.

Cook also addressed the fact that the industry is facing global pressure as a result of AI and changing agency models, and the Lions are looking to solve that with an intensified focus on ‘creative investment returns’.

“CMOs are navigating more complexity and scrutiny than ever before, with expectations to drive immediate results while building brands that endure. ROI is key for those attending, so it's essential that we continue to make that tangible for people by equipping them with tools, data and insights,” he explained.

When it comes to people  travelling to Cannes during the festival, but not purchasing a pass to be in the Palais due to the cost, Cook observed, "From the ‘Lions Creators Beach’ to our CMO and CEO Forums, as well as Lions Sport and Lions B2B – these are all taking place across the breadth of Cannes, and this, alongside our official partnerships throughout the City, means that Cannes Lions is not a Palais-only experience. The entire industry ecosystem is in Cannes to leverage it for their specific needs. We’ve been intentionally creating more pathways for the industry to engage with creativity, and we have a breadth of new passes available which are designed to reflect the evolving mix of companies that require different kinds of access."

On India specifically, the country was up to number five in the country rankings (from 12 in 2024) last year. And while final numbers were not available at the time of writing this article, Cook expected a ‘similar showing’.