No Lions but a few Perth connections in Cannes

So Cannes this year has been a bit of a disappointment for Perth, with one finalist in the main competition being the sum total. While there hasn’t been much work to fly the flag there’s been a few Perth and former Perth folks around the place.

Of course, our perennial correspondent Paul Yole is there with his family, wife Wilma and daughter Emma.

Another is Gatecrasher’s Sophie Lawrence, pictured above left with her beau Kevin Parker from Tame Impala and Emma Yole on the right (Apparently due to photo permission we can only run this on our WA site. Who knew Sophie was that famous?!).

Emma’s a bit of a muso herself – fiddle if we remember correctly. Perhaps she and Kevin could collaborate on a psychedelic version of The Devil Went Down To Georgia. But we digress.

Open Spaces Productions Béatrice Masia is there showing everyone how to say “Excusez-moi. Pouvons-nous avoir six verres de vin rosé, s’il vous plaît?”, along with her rising star director Matt Pitcher (“Je vais avoir une Exportation Emu”), who was a finalist in the Young Directors Award.

ECU’s Diane Slade is there, and there have been a few Perth ex-pats wandering the Boulevard de la Croisette: Tim Seddon & Gene Brutty ex Longtail and The Brand Agency, now CDs at Google Tokyo; former 303 Lowers Mark Fretten (now Cheil UK) and Liam Riddler (Grey London); Andrew Chu (ex Marketforce now CD at Grey JEH Bangkok; former Curtin Unversity and AWARD School graduate Wassim Kanaan, now senior creative at Saatchi Sydney (below left, with Innovation Lion for Toyota Landcruiser Emergency Network); ex MJB&B suit Michael Rebelo, now MD of Saatchi & Saatchi Sydney; and of course Matt Eastwood (Global CCO J Walter Thompson).

Unconfirmed sightings also of Reed Collins (CCO O&M Hong Kong) and photographer and DoP Allan Myles.

Hmm…not a bad agency amongst that lot.