Syracuse University creatives win Future Lions Grand Prix with Spotify sign language project

A creative team from the Newhouse School at Syracuse University won the Future Lions Grand Prix at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity on Wednesday for their idea to make songs more accessible for deaf and hard of hearing listeners on Spotify. Cannes Lions coverage See all of the Grand Prix winners here Top 5 Grand Prix campaigns Molly Egan and Marlana Bianchi’s “Break the Sound Barrier” project would use deepfake technology to add sign language to artist videos on the platform. Future Lions is an annual global competition hosted by AKQA and Cannes Lions, in partnership with Spotify and The Wall Street Journal. Each year, young creative teams are challenged to come up with ideas around a specific brief—this year’s called on young innovators to “spread positivity by using technology to connect listeners with the creators and communities they love.” As the winning team, Egan and Bianchi will collaborate with Spotify and AKQA to explore ways to bring their “Break the Sound Barrier” idea to life. There were three other winners in addition to the Grand Prix: “EarSafe” Team: Ana Gabunia and João Parreira School: Miami Ad School, Berlin, Germany Description: Turn Spotify into a free hearing tool using the songs you love that boosts the frequencies you can no longer hear. “The Good Loop” Team: Loris Ghidini, Giulia Ciapparella, Enrico Monacelli, Andrea Debernardi and Emma Ceramelli School: Accademia di Comunicazione, Milan, Italy Description: Create loops from your favorite tracks or sounds to help those with neurodiversity use stimming in a new way. “Beats in Motion” Team: Tate Lampi and Maia Johnston School: Leeds Arts University, Leeds, U.K. Description: A white noise tool to combat motion sickness you can turn on and off, up or down, depending on how you feel while traveling. “When we signed on to sponsor this year’s Future Lions, we had high expectations of the work. They totally knocked it out of the park,” said Grace Kao, global head of business marketing at Spotify. “Every single honoree raised the bar for innovation in our industry and set a new standard for our ability to connect with the world.” “We are inspired and invigorated by the limitless creativity of a rising generation,” said Ajaz Ahmed, founder and CEO of AKQA. “The Future Lions competition honors the pioneers and elevates their ideas that rethink the potential of technology and design to set the stage for a new wave of innovation.” Cannes Lions coverage See all of the Grand Prix winners here Top 5 Grand Prix campaigns

Syracuse University creatives win Future Lions Grand Prix with Spotify sign language project

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