National CineMedia (NCM), The Official U.S. Rep To The Cannes Lions International Festival Of Creativity, Set To Launch A New Young Marketers Category As Part Of The 2020 U.S. Young Lions Competition

Sponsored by FCB, The New Competition Category Will Shine A Light On Young American Brand Marketing Professionals

Free Registration for the 2020 U.S. Young Lions Competition Opens Today At http://canneslions.ncm.com/young-lions

CENTENNIAL, Colo. & NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--National CineMedia (NCM), the official U.S. representative to the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, is proud to announce that a new Young Marketers category will be added to the 2020 “Team USA” Young Lions competition.

The new Marketers competition will be open to young brand marketing professionals (30 years old or younger as of June 22, 2020), and each team must consist of two marketers from the same company working together to create a marketing strategy for their brand in support of a designated charity.

National CineMedia (NCM) President Cliff Marks noted, “Original, engaging ideas are key to a great brand marketing strategy. This is a chance for young professionals on the client side to go head-to-head against their fellow brand marketers at other companies from across the U.S. I’m excited to be opening up this Young Lions Marketers award category to American competitors for the first time, and I look forward to seeing the great work of our young professionals in all categories in 2020.”

FCB has taken on the sponsorship role of this new Young Marketers category competition and will underwrite the cost of the winning team’s trip to the 2020 Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity’s global Young Lions competition in June. FCB Global Chief Communications Officer Brandon Cooke said, “FCB is honored to be a sponsor of the inaugural Cannes Young Lions Marketers Competition. It’s important to our agency to inspire and meaningfully engage the next generation of marketing leaders. This is the perfect opportunity for top talent from across our industry to be challenged and learn new things, with the ultimate prize being a trip to Cannes 2020.”

Other 2020 Young Lions sponsors include: Digitas (Digital); Pereira & O’Dell (Film); UM (Media); National CineMedia - NCM (Print), and a new sponsor for the PR competition, Weber Shandwick. A longtime supporter of Young Lions, the firm has had regional winners from several markets represented at Cannes, and in 2018, its France team won a Silver Lion. Weber Shandwick has participated in the broader Cannes Lions PR category since its inception in 2009 and has been recognized with 100+ Cannes Lions in partnership with clients over the last decade.

Gail Heimann, President and CEO, Weber Shandwick, and President of the 2020 Cannes PR Lions jury, said, “Creativity, strategy and innovation are crucial to creating solutions that make an impact — and we’re eager to see how this year’s Young Lions competitors put their talent in these areas to the test.”

Registration for the 2020 U.S. Young Lions competition opens on January 15, 2020 at 12:01 a.m. ET at http://canneslions.ncm.com/young-lions and closes on February 19, 2020 at 8:00 p.m. ET.

Registration is free, and teams of young professionals working for advertising, digital, media, creative, and PR agencies as well as in-house marketing teams across the U.S. are highly encouraged to enter and compete. 2020 U.S. Young Lions competition categories include Digital, Film, Marketers, Media, Print and PR. Full registration information, rules and competition details are available on the website.

About the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity 2020 U.S. Young Lions Competition

The 2020 U.S. Young Lions competition is open to teams of two professionals aged 30 years or younger: born after June 22, 1989. The winning teams in each category – Digital, Film, Marketers, Media, Print and PR – will be sent, all expenses paid, to Cannes, France attend the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity from June 21 - 26, 2020 to participate in the global Young Lions competitions as “Team USA,” showcasing their talent globally by competing against teams from all over the world. Winners of the Cannes global competitions will receive free registration and accommodations to attend the following year’s Cannes Lions Festival. For more information, visit http://canneslions.ncm.com/young-lions.

About National CineMedia (NCM)

National CineMedia (NCM) is America’s Movie Network. As the largest cinema advertising network in the U.S., we unite brands with the power of movies and engage movie fans anytime and anywhere. According to Nielsen, more than 750 million moviegoers annually attend theaters that are currently under contract to present NCM’s Noovie pre-show in 57 leading national and regional theater circuits including AMC Entertainment Inc. (NYSE: AMC), Cinemark Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: CNK) and Regal Entertainment Group (a subsidiary of Cineworld Group PLC. LON: CINE). NCM’s cinema advertising network offers broad reach and unparalleled audience engagement with over 21,000 screens in over 1,700 theaters in 189 Designated Market Areas® (all of the top 50). NCM Digital goes beyond the big screen, extending in-theater campaigns into online and mobile marketing programs to reach entertainment audiences. National CineMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ: NCMI) owns a 48.7% interest in, and is the managing member of, National CineMedia, LLC. For more information, visit www.ncm.com and www.noovie.com.

About FCB

FCB (Foote, Cone & Belding) is a global, award-winning and fully integrated marketing communications company with a heritage of creativity and success dating from 1873. Named Cannes Lions 2019 North American Creative Agency of the Year and a 2019 Ad Age A-List global top 10, FCB focuses on creating “Never Finished” campaign ideas that have the power to transform brands, businesses and communities. With more than 8,000 people in 109 operations in 80 countries, the company is part of the Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE: IPG). Visit fcb.com or follow @FCBglobal on Instagram and Twitter and FCB Global on Facebook.