The South African voices behind global creative judging
Three South African creatives reflect on judging at Cannes Lions 2026 and what they learnt from the world’s standout work.
Every powerful advert starts with a creative idea, whether it plays on radio, appears on your phone, lives in a game, or becomes part of a bigger brand campaign.
A new episode of Talking in Creative Circles, the official podcast of the Creative Circle South Africa, produced in partnership with Kagiso Connect, takes listeners behind the scenes of Cannes Lions, one of the world’s leading creative awards festivals.
Inside a global creative benchmark
Cannes Lions is where some of the best advertising, entertainment, audio, digital and brand storytelling from around the world gets judged, debated and awarded.
n this episode, three South African creatives who judged at Cannes Lions 2026 take listeners inside the jury rooms, sharing how the process works and what helps standout work rise.
Guest host Danni Pinch, ECD at Accenture Song Cape Town, shares her experience judging Entertainment Lions for Gaming. She is joined by Suhana Gordhan, CCO at LoveSong, who judged Glass: The Lions for Change, and Jabulani Sigege, Group ECD at Machine, who judged Audio and Radio.
What makes an advert connect
Together, they unpack the intensity of the judging process, the debates that happen behind closed doors, and why the best work needs more than a clever concept. It needs craft, honesty, cultural relevance and real impact.
For radio listeners, Jabulani’s experience on the Audio and Radio jury is especially interesting. He reflects on how the category has grown beyond traditional radio ads to include fresh uses of sound, audio innovation and storytelling. Even as the formats change, the strongest work still relies on a powerful idea that connects with people.
Why local creativity travels
The conversation also shows why South African voices matter in global creative spaces. Our market brings its own culture, challenges, humour and perspective, and those insights can help shape how global work gets understood.
Cannes Lions may sound like a specialist industry event, but this episode tells a bigger story about local talent, global recognition and the power of creative work that travels.
Listen to the episode at the top of the page, or directly below.
Listen to past episodes in the full channel below: