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Registration, tea and coffee
Chris Taylor
Imposter-in-Chief, B&T
Sunita Gloster AM
Non Executive Director and Advisor
Hear from the extraordinary Gina Chick, 2023’s Alone Australia winner, along with representatives from SBS and ITV about what went into making the show in one of Australia's most unforgiving natural environments and the lessons for brands in being willing to relinquish an element of creative control.
Gina Chick
Adventurer, Writer and Rewilding Facilitator
Beth Hart
Chief Content Officer, ITV Studios
Joseph Maxwell
Head of Unscripted, SBS
Sofia Geraghty
Senior Reporter, B&T
It's never been tougher for marketers to develop great creative work that drives the brand and the business. However, the constant and evolving factors pushing and shoving marketers in all sorts of directions make it harder to resist temptations. But how do you juggle the lure of the new with the good old fundamentals? In this entertaining presentation, marketing legend Fernando Machado will share how marketing folks can avoid confusion and stay focused on the core things that may not seem that sexy, but can create a real difference.
Fernando Machado
Global Marketing Advisor, Ex-Burger King, NotCo & Activision Blizzard Global CMO, & Operating Partner Garnett Station Partners
Cannes in Cairns regular Jane Caro is set to take the stage again for another electrifying and unmissable keynote.
Jane Caro AM
Walkley Winner, Speaker, Writer and Author
Iconic Australian basketball champion Luc Longley AM will take to the stage in a candid fireside chat with award-winning journalist, author and sports writer Samantha Lane. The former Chicago Bulls pro will discuss what it takes to be a trailblazer, and what role gut instinct, self belief and mentors have within this. Longley, who is now an Australian professional basketball coach, will also talk about searching for strength in times of adversity, and how you adapt to challenges that can’t be overcome.
Luc Longley AM
Ex-National Basketball Association (NBA) star and Australian professional basketball coach
Sam Lane
Award-winning Broadcast Journalist
Chris Taylor
Imposter-in-Chief, B&T
Reef
Auditorium C
Matt Fahd
Head of Partnerships, Global Business Solutions for TikTok Australia
Jamie Power
Global Senior Vice President, Addressable Sales, The Walt Disney Company
Pond's Global Brand Director is one of a top trio looking at reimagining a 170-year-old heritage brand for a new generation. Armed with an historic and iconic brand legacy, the Unilever-owned skincare giant is just as strong and radiant now as it was back in 1846. But what is its secret?
Jopa Malantic
Global Brand Vice President, Pond's
Rose Herceg
President, WPP
David Dahan
Managing Director, WPP@Unilever
Slingshot's MD reckons it's time we stopped talking as much about struggle and vulnerability and spoke more about personal agency and facing up to your own challenges. Shall we put the vulnerability back in the personal wardrobe with crocs and crop tops and put our work clothes back on?
Jane Waterhouse
Managing Director, Slingshot Media
Join filmmaker and director of Netflix's smash documentary ONEFOUR: Against All Odds Gabriel Gasparinatos (Revolver), and Kiwi film director Zoë McIntosh (Sweetshop NZ), the director behind feature-length documentary, Stylebender, as they unpick some of the traits and skills needed to succeed in the cut-throat world of filmmaking
Gabriel Gasparinatos
Filmmaker
Poppy Reid
Editor In Chief, Rolling Stone ANZ, Variety ANZ & The Brag Media
Zoë McIntosh
Film Director, Sweetshop NZ
Thinkerbell founder and consumer psychologist Adam Ferrier argues that a focus on advertising is the tax you pay for not having a remarkable product and that the world's best brands create more remarkable moments through everything but advertising. Join the ever-intriguiging Ferrier as he unpacks what this means for brands and the entire advertising industry.
Adam Ferrier
Founder and Chief Thinker, Thinkerbell
President, Wieden + Kennedy APAC, CEO Finch and CEO Dentsu Creative, unravel, explore and give unique examples of how creative agencies and production houses are evolving and taking on a fascinating spectrum of weird and wonderful gigs.
Rob Galluzzo
CEO, Finch
Kirsty Muddle
CEO, Dentsu Creative, Australia & New Zealand
Rachael Ford-Davies
Managing Partner and Executive Producer, Collider
Yosuke Suzuki
President Tokyo/Seoul, Wieden+Kennedy
Chris Taylor
Imposter-in-Chief, B&T
Rainforest
Auditorium B
Keeva Stratton
Brand Strategist and Founder, Quip
Privileged to be brought up in the culture of his Maori ancestors, director and Cinematographer Ray Edwards is a firm believer that cultural stories hold the wisdom of generations. Flying in from New Zealand, join Edwards as he explores the intersection of creative storytelling in personal and professional life.
Ray Edwards
Director and Cinematographer
IAG's Chief Customer and Marketing Officer takes a look at the concept of "being Australian" — which is far more nuanced than past advertising has suggested. This session will explore learnings from deep customer and community insights, to show how celebrating national and local pride can better connect with and reach more Australians.
Michelle Klein
Chief Customer and Marketing Officer, IAG
Is the increasingly rigorous application of marketing science in Australia the end of risk taking in the marketing mix? Or, is it the opposite, and the principles of marketing effectiveness actually require us to roll the dice on some of our decision making to deliver above expectation results?
Robbie Bramall
Director of Marketing and Communications, Museum of Old and New Art (MONA)
Ruth Haffenden
Global Head of Brand and Marketing, Boody
Susan Coghill
Chief Marketing Officer, Tourism Australia
Kristy Bloomfield
Senior Vice President Global Marketing, Lyre's Spirit Co
Join Lion's Chief Growth Officer, Ed Stening and a Global Marketing Consultant who have been in more pitches than there have been cans drunk in Cairns as they explained why they pitch, why they don't pitch and what needs to change on both sides. Three people, three questions, a three-way dialogue and awesome questions from the audience.
Anubha Sahasrabuddhe
CGO, Lion
Ed Stening
Chief Marketing Officer
Kylie Ridler–Dutton
Senior Global Consultant, TrinityP3
Join some of the leaders at the forefront of media agency transformation for a discussion on what it means to be a modern media agency and where the industry is heading, in this session with Media Federation of Australia Board directors.
Aimee Buchanan
GroupM Australia & New Zealand CEO
Melissa Fein
CEO, Initiative Australia
Peter Horgan
CEO, Omnicom Media Group Australia and New Zealand
Virginia Hyland
CEO, Havas Media Network Australia
For over a decade, machine learning has suffocated the creativity that once defined our industry. Yet, in an ironic twist, AI — machine learning's sibling — might be our beacon. This technology, previously a dampener, now holds the potential to revive our industry. AI doesn't just challenge traditional advertising; it offers a blank slate, an opportunity ripe for rejuvenation and reinvention.
Pip Bingemann
Co-Founder, Springboards.ai
Keeva Stratton
Brand Strategist and Founder, Quip
Hemingway’s
Venessa Hunt
Director, Commercial Strategy and Growth, ARN
World-first research will be shared that’s set to blow the minds of even the most experienced marketers and agency leaders.
Guests should prepare to have their traditional frames of reference shattered as one of only two global sensory illusionists also takes to the stage. Prepare to get comfortable feeling uncomfortable, to unshackle yourself from the false truisms around influence and let go of any past preconceptions around this fundamental part of brand building.
Dan Krigstein
Director of The Growth Distillery and News Corp Australia's Growth Intelligence Centre
Toby Harrison
CSO and Consulting Lead, Ogilvy AUNZ
PepsiCo’s Chief Marketing Officer ANZ, Snacks & Beverages and VaynerMedia’s Head of Creative & Consulting unpack The Work. More detail soon.
Vandita Pandey
Chief Marketing Officer ANZ, Snacks and Beverages, PepsiCo
Yash Murthy
Head of Creative & Consulting, VaynerMedia Australia
We can't use profanity in advertising. Or can we? A Lecturer and top ECD tell all in this insightful and engaging seminar drawing upon decades of global research looking at the history of swearing, the multitude benefits of profanity and the brands that have successfully used it in their advertising. You'll learn how swearing makes you physically stronger, more enduring, more intelligent, more trustworthy, more relatable and even helps close the gender gap."
Dr Jacki Montgomery
Lecturer | Communication, Creative Industries and Screen Media
Matt Batten
Executive Creative Director, Five by Five Australia
What is more important to the advertising industry? Seasoned experience or fresh thinking? Debate Club, supported by IAB Australia, will feature some of the industry’s future leaders and legends to debate this question. However, not all will be as it seems as young debaters champion the cause of the Old Guard, while seasoned industry experts advocate for the Young Guns."
Jane Caro AM
Walkley Winner, Speaker, Writer and Author
Josh Faulks
CEO, Australian Association of National Advertisers
Alicia Placer
Sales Director, Excalin
Nate Vella
Senior Digital Strategist, Bench Media
Celine Dinant
Senior Business Manager, The Monkeys
Darragh Butler
Partner Manager, Uber Advertising
Lela Richmond-Johnson
Senior Account Executive Enterprise, Criteo
Angela Smith
CEO, Affinity
Venessa Hunt
Director, Commercial Strategy and Growth, ARN
Sponsored by
Presented by Pinterest
Registration, tea and coffee
Reef
Auditorium C
Matt Fahd
Head of Partnerships, Global Business Solutions for TikTok Australia
Christina Templin
Senior Manager Global Marketing Fiji Airways
Lauren Joyce
ARN Chief Strategy & Connections Officer
Will & Woody
KIIS Network’s National Drive show
Corporate responsibility and sustainability are now paramount. Brands and businesses must rigorously challenge their choices around purpose and profit and adapt to purpose-led growth - not BS buzzwords with no depth or impact. But what does authentic and credible action look like? Prepare to walk away from this session motivated, fired up and ready to do much more than you're doing now.
Speaker announed soon
Join Creator, Bake Off Semi-Finalist and Brand Ambassador, a top CMO and Australia's trusted authority on the creator economy, as he hosts a panel session with a difference. Jules will deliver five rapid-fire snapshots of creator marketing trends being pioneered by global brands before relying on our expert panel and audience’s bullsh*t detector to determine… Is this marketing trend fleeting or the future?
Hoda Alzubaidi
General Manager & publisher Travel Weekly, Content creator and TV food and travel personality
Jules Lund
Founder, TRIBE Creator Solutions
Serena Leith
Global Marketing Director, Australia & New Zealand, TikTok
Flying in from South Korea, the Head of Global Brand Group and EVP of food giant CJ CheilJedang, joins Pernod Ricard's Global Marketing Director and the Heads of Brand at a medical cannabis company and Australia’s fastest growing technology, Montu, to share candid and fascinating insights around the brand building. With experienced adlander Lou Barrett moderating, this session is not to be missed.
Lou Barrett
Managing Director, National Sales, News Corp Australia
Eric Thomson
Global Marketing Director / CMO, Pernod Ricard Winemakers
Shawn Park
Head of Global Brand Group, Executive Vice President, CJ CheilJedang Headquarters
Zoë Phillips
Head of Brand @ Montu & Alternaleaf | Global Brand Leader in Marketing, PR, Digital Content & Creative
Chris Taylor
Imposter-in-Chief, B&T
Rainforest
Auditorium B
Keeva Stratton
Brand Strategist and Founder, Quip
Former Warner Bros Discovery exec turned marketing scientist Peter Hammer will share exclusive new research from the Total Video ContentFX report — a research project developed by the Marketing Scientist Group comparing data from 2018 and 2023 — using an independent study of more than 3,000 Australian video viewers to paint a vivid one-day picture of video content viewing habits.
Peter Hammer
Managing Director, Marketing Scientist Group
Two top CMOs will join Boomtown's Chairman and The Ideas Business's founder to talk about the importance of efficiency. We'll cut through the bullsh*t and hear first-hand from some of the nation's leading brands about how they actively pursue efficiency through finding oft-ignored additional audiences. Presented by media collective Boomtown, you'll hear real stories from brands about their results from treating consumers outside the five metro's with more respect — with absolutely no spin.
Brian Gallagher
Independent Chairman, Boomtown
Kirsten Hasler
Head of Marketing, AU&NZ IKEA
Wade Kingsley
The Creative Coach, The Ideas Business
Three indie agency hotshots join IMAA head honcho Sam Buchanan for a chat that will go far beyond the buzzwords about the rise of the indies. The quartet will go in-depth to show why and how the nation's best indies are evolving and disrupting the industry.
Ange Collins
Founding Director, Adllins Media
Mike Wilson
Chairman, Hatched
Sam Buchanan
Chief Executive Officer, Independent Media Agencies Australia (IMAA)
Tamra Forde
Director and Owner, Ten Four Media
Unlikely business leader Ant Morell has built a $100m global business out of Unleashing Free Spirits. BOUNCEinc is a brand loved by kids, respected by parents, and used as a training ground by some of the words elite freestyle athletes. So how does a potentially dorky warehouse full of trampolines come to be a category-defining leader that dominates a growing global market? It’s a story of adrenaline, passion, and failure-fuelled success. An unmissable story of reading and misreading market trends, excessive cocktail bills, expensive mistakes, and the power of the human connection to unite people and build something special.
Ant Morell
Co-Founder, Head of Brand, BOUNCEinc
Keeva Stratton
Brand Strategist and Founder, Quip
Keynotes
Chris Taylor
Imposter-in-Chief, B&T
Gruen Star and Campaign Edge ECD, Dee Madigan, digs into the notion that advertising is to blame for everything from fake news to childhood obesity and gambling. Are we in a truly evil profession? Is there anything redemptive in what we do or are we all going to burn in hell?
Dee Madigan
Executive Creative Director, Campaign Edge
Dr Karen Nelson-Field
Founder & CEO, Amplified Intelligence
Stacy Wright Malone
VP of Global Business Marketing, Pinterest
The two KIC founders and podcast hosts Steph Claire Smith and Laura Henshaw are set to bring the house down in this keynote.
Laura Henshaw
CEO and Co-Founder, Kic
Steph Claire Smith
CCO and Co-Founder, Kic
Olly Newton
Executive Head – LiSTNR Commercial
TV producer-turned author, CEO whisperer, and keynote speaker, Maz Farrelly argues that if you can’t create impact, influence and grab and hold audience attention, you’re dead in the water. Go home, bake sourdough, learn golf. Prepare to leave this session with the tools to take on any pitch, float any idea or take any product to market, in a captivating way.
Maz Farrelly
Ex TV Producer Now Keynote Speaker
Chris Taylor
Imposter-in-Chief, B&T
Hemingway’s
Venessa Hunt
Director, Commercial Strategy and Growth, ARN
Two seasoned and celebrated regional creatives unpack The Work. More detail coming soon.
Adam Ross
Senior Director, Creative Strategy ASEAN and South Pacific region, Coca-Cola
Nikhil Panjwani
Regional ECD, Ogilvy Singapore
Two big network misfits, including creative leader Cam Blackley, beg you to join the rebellion against wasted opportunity. This session will give an insider's perspective with enough home truths and standout inspiration to give your next campaign the best chance of genuinely earning its place in culture.
Cam Blackley
Creative Leader
This comedian and digital marketer uses standup comedy to illustrate the importance of combining communication with humour. Is pitching to clients just like performing a tight-five on the 10pm time slot at the New York Comedy Club? This witty session will see Williams give a whistle-stop tour of her adventures as a stand-up comic and is not to be missed!
Katherine-Therese Williams
Standup Comedian and Former Media Agency Exec
With 80% of working parents having considered leaving the media industry, this essential and thought-provoking panel will examine why the statistic matters and what can and should be done about it.
Matt Fahd
Gogglebox Star, The Dads and The Docs Podcast host, and Head of Partnerships at TikTok
Kim Portrate
CEO, ThinkTV
Lauren Thornborough
Co-Founder, The Village; and Client Partner, UM
Louise Wilson
Co-Founder, The Village; and Head of New and Emerging Business, LinkedIn
Venessa Hunt
Director, Commercial Strategy and Growth, ARN
Sponsored by
Reef
Auditorium C
Chris Taylor
Imposter-in-Chief, B&T
In this wild era of digital transformation, traditional media landscapes have been shaken to the core, giving way to the emergence of innovation and revolutionary ways to consume content and services. But what is disrupting the disruptors and at what cost?
Hushidar Kharas
Head of Prime Video Australia & New Zealand
Melissa Hopkins
Chief Marketing and Audience Officer, Seven West Media
Michael Levine
Head of Uber Advertising, Australia and New Zealand
Award-winning creative, design, and performing arts duo from Bangarra Dance Theatre will look to the past, present, and future of First Nations storytelling. The duo will embark upon a candid discussion that will shift your consciousness as they share their thoughts on the spirit of creativity.
Jacob Nash
Director Hunt Quietly & Former Head Designer Bangarra Dance Theatre
Stephen Page AO
Former Artistic Director Bangarra Dance Theatre Director of Hunt Quietly & Former Head Designer Bangarra Dance Theatre
The effectiveness conversation around audio has never been more topical, but how are brands investing in audio and what results are they seeing? Join Lion's Core Beer Marketing Director, Menulog's Head Of Brand and Media and two audio aficionados who will dig into the evolving role of audio, music, the growth of sonic branding - and more.
Chris Allan
Head of Core Beer Marketing, Lion
Fiona Bateman
Head Of Brand and Media, Menulog
Noni Guest
Head of Brand and Fuel Marketing, Ampol Australia
Venessa Hunt
Director, Commercial Strategy and Growth, ARN
What is the thought process and motivation of today’s top marketer and will that differ in 2025? Here we'll unearth exactly what should be celebrated, binned or outright demonised for getting in the way of this crucial role.
More speakers coming soon
Jessica Manihera
Head of Marketing ANZ, Sanitarium
Josh Faulks
CEO, Australian Association of National Advertisers
Kim McConnie
Group Executive Marketing, Tourism & Events Queensland
Sophie Smith
Head Of Marketing, Officeworks
Chris Taylor
Imposter-in-Chief, B&T
Rainforest
Auditorium B
Keeva Stratton
Brand Strategist and Founder, Quip
Ad effectiveness doyen Andrew Tindall jets in from the UK to discuss never-before-seen new research from System1. It will examine why work gets attention, sparks emotion and harnesses great creativity and provide a holistic view of what effectiveness mean across the entire media mix.
Andrew Tindall
Global Creative and Media Partnerships Director, System1
Speakers announced soon
Why are we so afraid of the hardest question of all? Chloe Hooper, founder of employee experience and leadership firm Bare Feet, asks why change is feared in organisations and how you can overcome it by making others excited about moments of flux.
Chloe Hooper
Founder, Bare Feat
Join four inspiring individuals as they explain why it’s imperative that the stories we tell reflect every facet of our nation's diversity. This panel explores how brands and screen productions can become catalysts for change and will discuss what making tangible, meaningful changes to the way content engages people with disabilities truly looks like.
Henry Smith
Founder, Inclusively Made
Michael Apte
Chief Marketing Officer, Guide Dogs NSW
Paul Nunnari
Paralympian and Ambassador, Inclusively Made
Tracey Corbin-Matchett OAM
Chief Executive Officer, Bus Stop Films
Keeva Stratton
Brand Strategist and Founder, Quip
Keynotes
Chris Taylor
Imposter-in-Chief, B&T
Wielding the power of brand is nothing new, but doing it wisely and responsibly is far more complex. From the role of inclusivity, corporate responsibility and cultural awareness, to determining how to integrate social movements and sustainability into campaigns - responsible marketing should be among every CMO’s top priorities. Join Lola Bakare as she demystifies, peels back the layers and hits home the importance, necessity and priorities around truly responsible marketing. Following her keynote equity expert Aubrey Blanche-Sarellano will dig deeper with Lola in a fireside chat.
Lola Bakare
CMO Advisor & Inclusive Marketing Strategist
Aubrey Blanche-Sarellano
Founder of The Mathpath VP of Equitable Operations, Culture Amp
Richard Roxburgh
Actor, Writer and Producer
Chris Taylor
Imposter-in-Chief, B&T
Presented by Pinterest
Hemingway’s
Venessa Hunt
Director, Commercial Strategy and Growth, ARN
CJ CheilJedang's Head of Global Brand Group, Executive Vice President jets in from South Korea to join Wieden + Kennedy's Tokyo/Seoul President Yosuke Suzuki to unpack The Work around its bibigo brand. More detail coming soon.
Shawn Park
Head of Global Brand Group, Executive Vice President, CJ CheilJedang Headquarters
Yosuke Suzuki
President Tokyo/Seoul, Wieden+Kennedy
Uber's Asia Pacific Marketing Director joins Special's Head of Strategy to unpack the brand's award-winning creative. More detail coming soon.
Andy Morley
Director of Marketing, Uber Asia Pacific
Celia Garforth
Head of Strategy, Special
Venessa Hunt
Director, Commercial Strategy and Growth, ARN
Sponsored by
Close out your Cannes in Cairns experience with a well-deserved and other-worldly trip to the incredible Great Barrier Reef.
Rosie Oakshott – Managing Director
0431 387 971
rosie@bandt.com.au
Erin Green – Sales & Marketing Manager
0432 993 388
erin@bandt.com.au
Sarah Greenan – Strategic Partnerships and Growth Manager
0412 533 279
sarah@bandt.com.au
Aakash Panjabi – Business Development Executive
0405 887 543
aakash@themisfits.media
James Murray – Business Development Executive
0407 137 032
jamesm@bandt.com.au
Vanessa Rolfe – Director of Client Services
vanessa@themisfits.media
Romy Bradridge – Head of Owned Events
romy@themisfits.media
Submission enquiries –
events@themisfits.media
Sarah Greenan – Strategic Partnerships & Growth Manager – B&T
sarah@themisfits.media
Greg Graham – Sparrow
sparrow@themisfits.media
