The expert juries of BalCannes, the regional creativity competition, have recognized those who stood out with their creative achievements and granted them finalist status!
Who made it to the finals? From 30 March 2026, new finalist projects will be revealed daily – Monday to Friday – on the Media Marketing portal and BalCannes’ Facebook page, continuing until April. This year’s BalCannes project showcase will again take place on social media – leading up to our gathering at DK2026.
Please note that finalists will be announced in alphabetical order by project name, so don’t miss the daily updates!
PROJECT NAME: A CRY FOR HYDRATION | ENTRANT: Imago Ogilvy | CLIENT: Studenac | STRATEGIC PARTNERS: Riba ribi grize rep / Robson studio / DRAP | COUNTRY: Croatia | CATEGORIES: II. Best in Channel: 02. Best Online Video and 11. Best Social Media Idea; I. Best on Market: 03. Non-Alcoholic Beverages
PROJECT DESCRIPTION:
We say “I’m dying of thirst”, but we don’t mean it. But dehydration is serious, literally life and death. So, Studena chose not to warn about thirst, but to mourn it. Inspired by the Balkan tradition of mourning, Studena Narikače (wailing women) became a disruptive digital element. The tagline “Da ne umreš od žeđi, uzmi GUC GUC” captured the spirit of this campaign. A 2min video launched alongside 150+ short form posts for SoMe. The campaign gained strong SoMe momentum with The Mourned Ones activation, where Narikače created 50+ custom crying videos. We met all the KPIs, which were based on the budget and advertising, with:
+42M impressions FB/IG/TT/YT/GDN (KPI > 9.65%)
+24M engagement FB/IG/TT/YT (KPI >321.33%)
+26M views FB/IG/TT/YT (KPI > 171.29%).
65% TT followers increase
12% sales increase
+1 p.p. market share
73% brand preference increase
PROJECT NAME: A verse in every sip: Rubinino | ENTRANT: Fabula | CLIENT: Poetica Distillery | COUNTRY: Croatia | CATEGORY: III. Best of Branding & Rebranding: 01. Best Branding
PROJECT DESCRIPTION:
A verse in every sip: Rubinino
Rubinino is a new craft liqueur brand created around the idea that flavour can evoke emotion and meaning. As part of a liqueur series, Rubinino introduces a completely new taste profile that cannot be defined by a single ingredient. The brand is built on depth, expression and discovery, drawing from colour, language and cultural references to create a distinctive, category-defining identity that works naturally across languages. Rubinino invites consumers to slow down and experience flavour as something to be felt and remembered, a verse in every sip.
PROJECT NAME: An identity that never sleeps | ENTRANT: Bruketa&Žinić&Grey | CLIENT: SPAN | COUNTRY: Croatia| CATEGORY: III. Best of Branding & Rebranding: 02. Best Rebranding
PROJECT DESCRIPTION:
Span’s brand identity no longer reflected its reality. The challenge was to evolve a fragmented identity that failed to convey the company’s evolution into an international IT multi-specialist in Cloud, AI, and Cybersecurity, obscuring its key differentiator: 24/7, human-led expertise. Our solution was a live visual identity. In a screen-first era, a brand should be alive. Its core is the “Priority Star,” a living emblem visualising real-time data from SPAN’s Security and IT Support centres. It displays active alerts and tickets, making constant work visible and transparent. This builds trust with clients and gives employees tangible proof of their value. Even on static media, the identity bears witness to a moment in time. We didn’t just create a new logo; we made SPAN’s continuous care visible.
Find video summaries of past finalists on BalCannes’ Facebook page.
Congratulations to the finalists! Only the very best among them will earn the BalCannes awards and will be announced at the grand award ceremony during DK2026, taking place from 7 to 10 May 2026. See you in Rovinj!
