Your brilliant early-year campaign is basically the Breakfast Club of advertising right now (yeah, we’re Gen X). It was groundbreaking when it launched, everyone talked about it, and then… life moved on. Now it’s sitting in the back of judges’ minds like John Hughes characters after detention—memorable, but buried under months of newer stories.
Just because your campaign launched at the beginning of the awards eligibility period doesn’t make it any less award-worthy than something that dropped last week. But recency bias is real, and judges are human.
Is the Recency Problem Real?
We’ve might have seen this before. Work that debuts in the final quarter of the eligibility period may get disproportionate attention during awards season. Not because it’s necessarily better (and there are some serious heaters out there now), but because it’s fresh in everyone’s mind. Meanwhile, equally brilliant campaigns from earlier in the year get relegated to the “oh yeah, I remember that” pile.
It’s not intentional. Judges aren’t trying to be unfair. But when you’re reviewing (hyperbole alert) BILLIONS of entries, the work you saw last week is going to feel more immediate than the work you saw ten months ago. Unless it’s Fearless Girl. Remember that year?
That’s just human nature. But it’s also fixable.
Introducing Lost & Found: The Best Work You’ve Forgotten
Lost & Found: The Best Work You’ve Forgotten gives Indie Agency News members a chance to dust off their early-year gems and remind everyone why this work deserves to win at Cannes Lions.
Every submission gets at least a mention on our platform—whether that’s a liveblog feature or a dedicated post.
But the real fun happens when we invite you on the show for a deep dive into your forgotten gem on Monday, June 2nd.
Think of it as your campaign’s victory lap—right when judges need to remember why they loved it in the first place.
This isn’t about rehashing old case studies or patting ourselves on the back for work we did months ago. This is about strategic timing, and making sure your best work gets the attention it deserves when judges are making their decisions.
Because great ideas don’t have expiration dates.
What We’re Looking For
We want campaigns that:
- Launched in the early months of the awards eligibility period
- Are entered for Cannes Lions 2025
- Deserve another moment in the spotlight
- Have a story worth telling (again)
It doesn’t have to be the biggest campaign of your year. It just has to be work you believe in—work that might get overlooked simply because it’s been a while since launch.
How It Works
Every submission gets featured on our platform in some way—you’re guaranteed that visibility boost.
But here’s where it gets interesting. For the best stories, we’ll bring you on the show to tell the real story behind your work. We want to know the stuff that doesn’t make it into case studies:
What we’ll dive into:
- The Brief That Started It All: How did this project land on your desk? What was the original ask vs. what you actually built?
- The Plot Twists: What changed during the process? What surprised you? What almost went wrong?
- The Results (And What They Really Mean): Beyond the numbers, what did this work actually accomplish? What are you most proud of?
- The Lessons You’d Never Put in a Case Study: What would you do differently? What did you learn about your team, your client, or yourself?
- Why This Work Has Legs: What makes it still relevant months later? Why should Cannes judges remember it?
It’s like the behind-the-scenes commentary track for your best work—and it becomes yours to use however you want for biz dev, case studies, or just showing off your strategic thinking.
Ready to Give Your Work a Second Look?
If you’ve got early-year work that deserves another moment in the spotlight, we want to hear about it.
The timing couldn’t be better. Cannes deadline is approaching, and judges will start their review process soon. This is your chance to make sure your best work stays top of mind.
Don’t let early-year brilliance get lost in year-end noise.
Don’t, don’t, don’t, don’t… don’t you forget about me.
Yes, we’re insufferable.
Register Your Interest
Ready to showcase your forgotten gem? Fill out the form below and tell us about the work you want to feature.
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- About the Author
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Doug Zanger is the founder and editor-in-chief of Indie Agency News. He is also the founder of the Creative Bohemian consultancy, lives in the Pacific Northwest and is insufferable about it.