The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity has announced that Jeff Goodby and Rich Silverstein, founders of Goodby Silverstein & Partners, will be honored with the Lion of St. Mark Award at the 2019 Festival.
“The Lion of St. Mark is a special award that honors those who have made a significant and outstanding contribution to creativity in advertising and communications over a lifelong career. Jeff and Rich have had such a profound influence, not only through their much celebrated and creatively ground-breaking work but also by inspiring others to create great work too. Their legacy is truly remarkable, and we’re delighted to celebrate and reward them for their achievements,” said Philip Thomas, chairman of Cannes Lions.
Both men started their careers in journalism, Goodby as a reporter and illustrator at The Boston Herald American, Time Magazine, and Mother Jones, and Silverstein as an art director in the heyday of Rolling Stone Magazine. After meeting at Ogilvy & Mather under Hal Riney, they started GS&P with Andy Berlin in 1983 and won their first Cannes Lion for the Mill Valley Film Festival. They went on to win numerous Lions across all brand categories, encompassing an unprecedented variety of styles. Campaigns included: “Got Milk?”, the Budweiser lizards, “Invent” for Hewlett-Packard, the E*Trade chimpanzee, Polaroid’s “See What Develops,” NBA’s “I love this game,” “Skateboarding” for Nike and campaigns for Sega Games.
Since 2000, the agency has excelled at creating work that transcends media. Most recently GS&P received Gold Lions for “I am a Witness” (the first emoji for a social cause), the “Dreams of Dali” VR experience, Chevrolet’s Sonic Launch with OKGO, and Cheetos Museum.
Much of GS&P’s work has entered into the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art in New York.
Commenting on the Lion of St. Mark Award, Goodby credited GS&P’s staff and culture, “The people who have gone through GS&P have changed our industry more than Rich or I could ever have on our own. A spirit of humanity and forgiveness has made this place a launching pad for things never done before, over and over, always with new people. We are proud of the ideas we’ve incubated, the friendships that have been formed, the clients met and the families that have been made possible by 35 years of this stuff.”
Goodby and Silverstein have had an effect on advertising that can be seen particularly in the leaders they have created and mentored, many of whom have successfully started their own agencies. GS&P’s creative alumni include Gerry Graf (founder of Barton F. Graf), Fred Raillard and Farid Mokart (of Fred & Farid), Paul Venables (founder of Venables Bell & Partners), Jamie Barrett (founder of barrettSF) and leaders like Chris Beresford-Hill (CCO of TBWAChiatDay New York), Steve Simpson (CCO of Ogilvy & Mather North America), and Karin Onsager-Birch (CCO of FCB West).
“This is an amazing honor,” Silverstein added. “What makes Jeff and me most proud is that we’ve provided a respectful space for so many talented people to make intelligent work, raise families and have fun all at the same time.”
In 2005 Silverstein was president of the Titanium Lions Jury, he presided over the Film, Press & Outdoor Lions Jury in 2002 and served on the Film Lions Jury in 1993. In 2009 Silverstein served on the Titanium and Integrated Lions Jury.
Both Goodby and Silverstein will take part in an interview hosted by Philip Thomas during the Festival in Cannes, and the presentation of the Lion of St. Mark will take place during the final Awards Show on Friday, June 21.
Previous Lion of St. Mark Winners
- 2018: Piyush Pandey, executive chairman and creative director of Ogilvy South Asia, and Prasoon Pandey, director, Corcoise Films
- 2017: David Droga, founder and creative chairman, Droga5
- 2016: Marcello Serpa, former partner, AlmapBBDO
- 2015: Bob Greenberg, founder, chairman and CEO, R/GA
- 2014: Joe Pytka, director, PYTKA
- 2013: Lee Clow, chairman, TBWAMedia Arts Lab, director of Media Arts, TBWAWorldwide
- 2012: Dan Wieden, co-founder and global executive creative director, Wieden+Kennedy
- 2011: Sir John Hegarty, worldwide creative director, founder, BBH
