Registration Desk and Badge Pickup Open

Pick up your badge early so you can head straight to the sessions on Monday.

VIP Welcome Reception (Gold Pass Only)

Join us at the jewel in the heart of Villa Borghese as we kick off Europe’s biggest entertainment marketing event of the year. Your gold pass is your ticket into the party with the influencers at the forefront of a changing industry.

All Gold Pass holders are invited to the reception.

Casina Valadier
Piazza Bucarest
Villa Borghese
00187 Roma

Registration Desk and Badge Pickup Open

Early arrival is strongly recommended to avoid the line for badge pickup.

Gold Pass VIP Lounge Open

Hosted by:

Recharge Lounge Open

Recharge your devices, catch up with colleagues, and network with Europe's best marketers and creatives. Be sure to thank our sponsors for that extra power boost.

Hosted by:

Official Conference Welcome

Don't miss the official introduction to the conference, including our opening video, presented by our official design partner, Milan-based creative agency Alkanoids.

Speaker:
Lester Mordue, European Director of Conference and Relations, PromaxBDA

KEYNOTE: The Swarm versus The Mob - The Driving Forces and Identities of Social Networks

Swedish cyberphilosopher and author Alexander Bard likes to shake our image of the world, arguing that the digital interactivity creates a historic revolution of the same dignity as once the spoken and written word and the art of printing. In his latest book Syntheism Alexander Bard and Jan Söderqvist describe a new world. It is the world we share, but not all are citizens.

What happens if we assume individualism is a religion and that reality, at first hand, is virtual, not physical? What if God is the name of humanity’s dreams, projected towards one single point, could we then reach that point? Alexander Bard argues that now we can. For the first time in human history is practically possible for all seven billion humans to connect their dreams in real time. The tool is well known - Internet. It is a dramatic encounter between metaphysics and technology. Passive recipients of the future now change to active participants. The participatory age is here. And it affects and changes the rules of the game in a revolutionary way.

With engaging observations, new interpretations and an educational language Alexander Bard invites you to a both challenging and inspiring contemporary analysis and insight into tomorrow.

Speaker:
Alexander Bard, Cyberphilosopher

KEYNOTE: The Future of TV

Television as a medium has long been declared dead, yet we have more people watching more TV, in more places, more often, and on more devices than ever before. And, at the same time, TV has never attracted more star power, creativity, and accolades and has never generated more engagement than it does today. What's going on, what does it mean, and how do we capitalize on it?

In this bold and provocative session, Tom Goodwin takes you on a journey through the past, present, and future of TV and shares new ways to think about content, monetization, and growth opportunities. His presentation will show how, if we abandon the old frameworks and models that have limited our potential in the past, we can expand what we do around the world with more screens, data, meaning, and interactivity.

Speaker:
Tom Goodwin, Executive Vice President & Head of Innovation, Zenith Media

Networking Break

Grab a coffee, chat with colleagues, and meet some of the best creatives and marketers in the world.

14 Tips To Build Positive Storytelling Communities

In 2018, consumers are now your greatest video content creators. People trust people more than brands on their social media timelines. So how do we tell a story when we're no longer the ones holding the camera? Former CNN Senior Social Media Reporter Yusuf Omar shares global examples of how online groups and communities can create solutions, stories, and constructive narratives. Because today's social media user doesn't just want to witness the world; they want to make it better.

Speakers:
Sumaiya Omar, Co-Founder, Hashtag Our Stories
Yusuf Omar, Journalist & Co Founder, Hashtag Our Stories

The Power of Problem-Solving Design: Why Some Brands Are Fit and Others Are Just Fitting In

With more pressure than ever to create "thumb-stopping, unmissable, stand-out" brand content, why isn't there more "thumb-stopping, unmissable, stand-out" brand design? In a rallying cry for a return to the power of problem solving in design, we share our thinking on how brands can find their own original identity and look at inspiring examples from inside and outside our industry.

Speaker:
Jane Fielder, Head of Design, RED BEE

The Rules Have Changed: Revolutionary Thinking For Creative Business Owners

Producing brilliant creative is hard enough, but running a thriving business isn’t easy, either. For the Agency of the 21st Century, success lies in understanding how the industry has changed, and new approaches are needed.

Speakers:
Joel Pilger, Consultant, RevThink
Tim Thompson, Founder & Chief Revolution Thinker, RevThink

Produced in Partnership with :

How to Make Millennials Care About Your Gen-X Programs

You know how tough it is to impress millennials, right? Those constantly selfie-taking avocado-bread eaters with the attention span of a goldfish—that's why we marketers think all content needs to be uber-funny and bite-size in order to make them notice you.

We tried a different approach. We took a well-known costume drama and derived topics that proved relevant to younger generations. The result was a slow fashion-awareness campaign based on a TV series that takes place in the roaring '20s, an era that is associated with quality clothing, local and handmade production, and crafts.

We'll supplement this case study with other examples of thought-provoking TV campaigns.

Speaker:
Lucie Macháčková, Head of On-Air Promotion, Czech Television

Neuroscience in Marketing: How to Not Commit Brand Suicide

Psychological insights can be useful in revealing the hidden influencers of consumer behavior. For brands, they offer more potent outcomes than big data or traditional market research.

Using case studies in cognitive psychology, neuropsychology, and behavioral science, we'll demonstrate how we all live much more in the non-conscious world than in the conscious one. We'll show how underlying need states that are emotional and non-conscious can influence customer behavior. And we'll discuss how we can now measure these things and give brands actionable outcomes in relation to onboarding, retention, trust, and loyalty.

This session will challenge your assumptions, inspire you to consider new solutions, and help you understand alternative methods.

Speaker:
Dr. Simon Moore (BSc, PhD, CPsychol), Business and Consumer Psychologist and Managing Partner, Innovation Bubble

Midday Break

Sessions resume promptly at 14:00.

The Majority Report - Media in 2030

In a world of expansive technology growth, where 50% of today's jobs will have been automated, what will the role and relationship of media brands and consumers be? By 2030, the world may be explosively different, but there are already fissures revealing how AI, blockchain, and genetics are about to radically transform everything. Luckily, humanity will be deeply rooted at the core. To be viable beyond the next decade, a radical rethink in contextually relevant creativity will be required. Presenting in an engaging format that challenges perceptions and beliefs, Jonathan and Dean turn different lenses to today's bleeding-edge developments in technology, business, and society to reveal true implications for media, unearth possibilities for tomorrow, and share tools for success at scale.

Speakers:
Dean Donaldson, Digital Futurologist & Managing Partner, Kaleidoko
Jonathan Tavss, Digital Marketer & Managing Partner, Kaleidoko

The Use of Animation for Brands: A World of Marketing Possibilities

In a world where brands have less and less time to make an impression, can animation be part of the answer? Can it reinforce your brand identity or start a conversation with your audience? Does the use of animation make brands more distinguishable and give new opportunities to stand out?

Speakers:
Roberto Bagatti, Chief of Design, RAI
Wesley Louis, Director, The Line Animation
Tim McCourt, Director & Animator, The Line Animation

How To Break Social Media With Videos On Mobiles And For Mobile Devices

Experience new visual storytelling tools like Facebook Live and VR, empower your team's mobile video editing skills, and engage new audiences and consumers with mobile-first workflows. Yusuf Omar built the world's biggest mobile journalism (MOJO) newsrooms at the Hindustan Times in India, eNCA in South Africa, and CNN in London. Now let's find your organization's MOJO!

Speaker:
Yusuf Omar, Journalist & Co Founder, Hashtag Our Stories

Lunatics, Junkies, Criminals & Amateurs

In this provocative and entertaining session, writer and thinker Richard Holman goes inside the world of outsiders to discover the lessons in creativity we can learn from those who society would shun.

Speaker:
Richard Holman, Thinker, Writer & Speaker

Digital Disruption: A Blessing, Not a Curse

After years of watching and waiting, digital disruption is upon us. We are now facing a new normal that forces us to rethink how we communicate with viewers across both linear and nonlinear services.

Learn how this digital revolution in television can be tamed and harnessed. Leave the session with tangible, practical takeouts borne from experience within broadcast and other sectors, not theoretical future gazing.

See what a real personalised viewer experience could look like in 2018, across the owned, earned, and paid media estate. Understand how to integrate into your existing linear promotional strategy, and reap the benefits of the digital age.

Speakers:
Ryan Shannon, Director, Indicia (Part of Konica Minolta Marketing Services)
Jo Wilkinson, Co Founder/Director, James&Wilkinson Media

Networking Break

Grab a coffee, chat with colleagues, and meet some of the best creatives and marketers in the world.

Hosted by:

KEYNOTE: Breaking the News

More details to come.

Speaker:
Gerardo Greco, Editor in Chief of Radio1 and Rai Radio News, RAI

KEYNOTE: Unleash The Power of Puerility

Mark Denton Esq. shares the secret of how to sustain a 40-year career in advertising and design by harnessing the magic power of stupid schoolboy ideas.

Speaker:
Mark Denton, Creative Director, Writer, Speaker

Client/Agency Speed Dating

By invitation only. Contact David Tilove at david.tilove@promax.org for more information.

Welcome Reception and Cocktails

Enjoy a stunning view of Rome while connecting with old friends and networking with new colleagues.

Registration Desk and Badge Pickup Open

PromaxBDA staff are available all day at the registration desk to answer your questions.

Gold Pass VIP Lounge Open

Hosted by:

Recharge Lounge Open

Recharge your devices, catch up with colleagues, and network with Europe's best marketers and creatives. Be sure to thank our sponsors for that extra power boost.

Hosted by:

KEYNOTE: New Best Practices 2018

Lee Hunt presents an updated version of his annual roundup of strategies, tactics, and creative. From portfolio promos to reverse episodics to six-second promos in 30-second breaks, we'll take a look at the new ideas that are changing our business.

Speaker:
Lee Hunt, Strategist, Trainer, & Industry Thought Leader, Lee Hunt LLC

KEYNOTE: VICELAND Marketing Approach: F*cking Convention

This session is a no-BS, anything-goes, convention-bucking approach to marketing a subversive lifestyle channel on a mission to be a cultural passion brand.

Launched only two years ago in the overly crowded entertainment landscape, VICELAND challenges conventional television with programming topics that others shy away from—marijuana, psychoactive drugs, sex, racism—with a radically distinctive voice, aesthetic, and personality that humanize and provoke viewers while inviting them directly into the conversation.

A small and scrappy group that does 100% of the creative in-house, including a live-action crew that shoots 20 minutes of fresh on-air interstitials each month, the VICELAND marketing and creative team isn't afraid to take risks, piss people off, and fly in the face of corporate protocol.

With an Emmy win, two Grand Clios, and 19 Promax wins in year one on the scene, SVP Marketing + Creative Meghan Kirsch takes us through the dos and don'ts of the strategic and creative approach behind marketing VICELAND.

Speaker:
Meghan Kirsch, SVP, Marketing and Creative, VICELAND

Networking Break

Grab a coffee, chat with colleagues, and meet some of the best creatives and marketers in the world.

Emotional Branding: How Brands Are Evolving From "Like" to "Love"

Every brand is talking, but most people don't hear a word they're saying, mainly because they are talking to themselves about themselves, not to their audiences. Not only is this boring, but it's also becoming dangerous for companies. If the main content a brand shares is its product or itself, then it will soon face irrelevance. Great content transforms brands from distraction to attraction.

For many years, the "like" has been the thermometer to measure the influence of a brand on social networks. However, "like" is incomplete and imperfect, a romance without a future. Love, on the other hand, is commitment and dedication. The relationship between brands and people is in a new stage of evolution from the incompleteness of "like" to the fullness of "love."

However, there are many companies today that continue to allocate more resources to attracting new customers instead of gaining the loyalty and love of those they already have. Brands must spend most of their efforts on implementing emotional technology to create a digital world that suits the client and not the other way around.

Remember, brands: the opposite of love is not hate, it's indifference.

Speaker:
Andy Stalman, Mr. Branding

Head | Heart | Gut - How to Make Emotional Connections

We are all creatures of habit that are looking for distractions and connections. This session is aimed to help creators understand how they can disrupt the everyday and create content that can be remembered by the consumer. Looking at science, data and consumer learnings, the session will help the attendees to make a deeper connection with their audiences.

The session will cover three distinct areas:
Brain - Using neuroscience best practices to encourage memory encoding and recall of messaging.
Heart - Evoking emotional states and heightening more than just love for a brand.
Gut - Understanding that data can be king but your gut can rule the world!

Speaker:
Liam Spragley, Digital Strategist, Substance Global

The Illusion of Creating Speed

The Illusion of Creating Speed

There's a need for speed.

From the United States to China, action is a global phenomenon, especially for entertainment value and engagement. But the need for speed can kill your budget, your client approval—and your big idea. So how do you use speed without actually using speed?

In this talk, director and action design expert Lawrence Ribeiro explains how to fuel your video content with speed and action—without blowing up your budget, your client relationship, or your idea!

You'll learn secrets on how to optimize your approach and how to create the thrill of speed without the bill of speed. Then see it all come together in a breakdown of the car chase in The Bourne Identity.

Speaker:
Lawrence Ribeiro, Director & Action Design Expert

How to Think More like a Dinosaur

It seems digital technology has become the center of the conversation for screen designers. The focus is on how imagery is created rather than why. In a biographical trip through his career, Martin cautions against the seduction of digital technologies to remind us that audiences respond to ideas, not techniques.

Speaker:
Martin Lambie-Nairn, Founder, ML-N

Binge-Watch Cinema - The New Russian Revolution

Meanwhile, in Russia . . . a series has expanded into a full-scale movie release and gone right into the top 15 national blockbusters! Here, from firsthand experience, is everything you need to know about this insane experiment and its crazy advertising campaign. The CMO of the TV3 channel tells you the whys and hows—and if it can it be repeated.

Speaker:
Lily Sheroziya, CMO, TV-3 Channel

Engaging The Thumb - Snapchat and Instagram Stories

Snapchat invented it; Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and even Skype have now all adopted it. Stories! The vertical, mobile format dominating social media. Master social publishing and discovery on platforms like Instagram Stories and Snapchat with these tips, tricks, and hacks for telling professional stories and reaching younger audiences.

Speaker:
Sumaiya Omar, Co-Founder, Hashtag Our Stories

Midday Break

Sessions resume promptly at 14:00.

Owning the Passion, the Players and the Fans

What are the biggest challenges in marketing sports today? What are companies doing to address these challenges? What do they do to "own" a sport, and how does it become their event? Passion, personality, the fans . . . what do they do that's so special to win their hearts? How do they engage the millennial generation?

Sky UK and Eurosport will show their strategic approach and creative work in the pursuit of marketing sports events in the new digital age. Eurosport was chosen by the IOC to be the gatekeeper of the Olympics in Europe for the next decade, with the mission of reengaging with the younger audiences. Here's what we did for the PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympics, teaming up with DixonBaxi (London) and Laplage studio (Paris) in order to redefine the Olympic experience.

Speakers:
Daniel Capstick, Creative Director, DixonBaxi
Sebastien Lipszyc, Co-Founder & Music Composer, Laplage Studio
Guillaume Mouillé, Creative Director, Eurosport
Ceri Sampson, Creative Director, Design, Sky Creative Agency

The Art of Title Sequences

A main title is the bridge into a story and is often its own story. Nic will discuss the value and strength of main titles, as well the process journey from client briefing through delivery, including what worked and what especially didn't across several projects.

Speaker:
Nic Benns, Creative Director, MOMOCO

Fail Better

You have to embrace your failures and own them; figure out what went wrong and what to do better next time. Otherwise, you'll repeat those errors in the future. Acknowledging your mistakes is important in order to move on.

Strokes of genius don't come about because some people succeed more often than other people do. No, successful people just DO more.

Failure doesn't mean you're a loser who will never amount to anything in life. Failure is not partial, and it has no favorites. Failure doesn't pick on special people like you to torment and punish. It is a blind teacher. It's only doing its job. It is never personal!

When you accept that failure is an option, you will be able to come up with great stuff. And what's the worst that could happen? Right: failure. But if you already know this and have accepted it, then there is no fear of failure anymore. You can just DO.

Don't get ready. Just get started!

Speaker:
Steve Brouwers, Creative Director, SBS Belgium

Rai: Broadcast Design, Italian Style

The expression "Italian design" generally refers to all forms of design, from interior, fashion, and architectural to graphic design and many more. Examples like the classic Lambretta, the Woolmark logo, the futuristic Brionvega TV set, or Borsalino hats are just a few of the numerous icons that have made Italian design such a unique presence in the 20th century's collective consciousness. Rai, the Italian public broadcast service, has decided to rebrand, celebrating one of the main traits that defines the country's identity and bringing minimalism and modernism to a 40% average of the Italian share.

Speaker:
Roberto Bagatti, Chief of Design, RAI

Agency Insights and Best Practices

Now that you understand your underlying business challenges, what should you do about it? Together we will apply modern positioning, marketing, and sales practices to your Agency of the 21st Century. In addition, we will tackle how to escape commoditization, modern sales techniques, and the best practices all agencies should embrace to make our industry stronger.

Speakers:
Joel Pilger, Consultant, RevThink
Tim Thompson, Founder & Chief Revolution Thinker, RevThink

Produced in Partnership with :

TV on Your Terms - When Artificial Goes Natural

Award-winning digital design agency founder Fabian Birgfeld shares his insights into where technology will take our content, moving from voice activation that acts on command to artificial intelligence that proactively selects based on our preferences. How will your choices be affected?

Speaker:
Fabian Birgfeld, CEO and Co-Founder, W12 Studios

The Link Between Creativity and Effectiveness

Creativity may be intrinsically linked to effectiveness and may possibly be the last unfair advantage a company can take, but what happens when computers can generate creative marketing at the same level as a human? Contagious will answer this question (hopefully better than a robot could) and outline what it means for anyone whose job or business relies on creativity.

Speaker:
Stephane Scheyven, European Business Development Director, Contagious

Networking Break

Grab a coffee, chat with colleagues, and meet some of the best creatives and marketers in the world.

Hosted by:

KEYNOTE: Sir Lenny Henry

Further details to come.

Speaker:
Sir Lenny Henry, Actor, writer, comedian and television presenter

State of our Art

This perennial favourite of the Conference is a true celebration of the best of the best in promotional content creation. As our world seemingly becomes more divided and fractured than ever, one global constant connects us—our art. Art inspires us. Art entertains us. Art can move us to tears, to laughter, and to act. This year, we circle the globe and look at the video content on TV and online that is inspiring action and change. This is the State of Our Art.

Speaker:
Elena Frova, Creative Director, FOX Networks Group, Italy
Lester Mordue, European Director of Conference and Relations, PromaxBDA

Pre-Awards Reception

Kick off the evening's festivities, dine with your friends, and raise a glass to this year’s finalists.

Presented by:

Doors Open for the PromaxBDA Europe Awards Ceremony

Gold Pass Holders have preferred seating for the ceremony. Please see PromaxBDA staff for more information.

PromaxBDA Europe Awards 2018 Ceremony

Celebrate Europe's best entertainment marketing and design from the past year as we see who takes home the gold.

Hosted by actor and comedian Jonathan Kite.

After Party - Hosted by West One Music Group

Conference Badge required for entry.

Shuttles will be available to take guests to the Officine Farneto, but we ask guests to make their own transportation arrangements when the party is over. The shuttle is one way only.

Shuttle pickup: at the entrance of the Cavalieri congress centre on the Lobby Level.

Hosted by: