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: HT GPS locator – so you always know where your pet is (The poster that helps find lost dogs) | ENTRANT: Bruketa&Žinić&Grey | CLIENT: Hrvatski Telekom | STRATEGIC PARTNER: Hanger Media COUNTRY: Croatia | CATEGORIES: I. Best on Market: 04. Telecommunications; II. Best in Channel: 04. Best Outdoor – OOH, 05. Best Digital Outdoor – DOOH, 07. Best Experiential Advertising & Events, 12. Best Creative Use of Technology; IV. Best of Positive Change: 05. Community & Culture
PROJECT DESCRIPTION:
In Croatia, where over 1,500 dogs go missing each year, HT set out to turn awareness for its GPS Pet Tracker into real-world help. With Bruketa&Žinić&Grey, they transformed out-of-home media into a scent beacon: a poster that releases food aroma and offers water, encouraging stray dogs to stop and stay calm until owners arrive. Installed along popular dog-walking routes, the activation reframed media from message to utility and made the tracker’s promise tangible through behavioral design because dogs follow their noses. The campaign generated 6,300 activations on the interactive ad, 1,393,152 views, 27,493 total engagements, and 45 media mentions, demonstrating both public interest and the replicable potential of the idea near parks, trails, shelters, and other dog routes in markets beyond Croatia.
PROJECT NAME: It’s time to stop | ENTRANT: Via Media | CLIENT: Bingo Group | COUNTRY: Bosnia and Herzegovina | CATEGORIES: I. Best on Market: 06. Retail; II. Best in Channel: 07. Best Experiential Advertising & Events, 11. Best Social Media Idea; IV. Best of Positive Change: 02. Equality, Diversity & Inclusion
PROJECT DESCRIPTION:
The client brief was a Women’s Day CSR activity focused on their largely female workforce. We recognised an opportunity to address a real, urgent issue shaping women’s lives: femicide, that became a silent epidemic in B&H. While institutions were inactive, NGO-led petitions for legal recognition had stalled at 5,000 signatures. In a politically and media-fragmented market, unified action felt futile. Given its responsibility to women, we recommended Bingo adopt a clear stance and channel its everyday reach into meaningful civic participation.
We reframed 8 March from promotion to participation and turned the biggest domestic company into a protest machine. At 10:00, Bingo paused operations nationwide for 30 minutes and converted every store, warehouse and factory into a petition-signing point. The “Time to Stop” platform carried a single call to action: Sign the petition!. We executed with NGO partners, using owned retail for conversion and an earned coalition of media, employers, influencers and football clubs for amplification.
Results
In seven days, 111,753 citizens signed (80,000+ on day one; 95% in-store). The campaign reached 5.2M people, generated 2.1M engagements, 300k watch minutes and 400+ media stories (~40% organic). In July 2025, Parliament recognised femicide in the Criminal Code.
PROJECT NAME: Label created by the wine itself – Piquentum Brut Nature | ENTRANT: Studio Sonda | CLIENT: Piquentum (Vinski Podrum Buzet) | COUNTRY: Croatia | CATEGORIES: I. Best on Market: 02. Alcoholic Beverages; II. Best in Channel: 08. Best Low-Volume Packaging Design
PROJECT DESCRIPTION:
In the sparkling wine industry, over 97% of producers compromise the product with artificial ingredients. On the other hand, there is Piquentum, a brand that fully commits to the principles of 100% organic production. Unlike others, who add industrial sugar and artificial yeasts, Piquentum produces them naturally, and in-house. So, the solution was to transform the label into a physical manifesto of zero compromise. During the crucial secondary fermentation, when the yeasts convert sugar into bubbles, sediment is always created, and it is always removed from the bottle through the technique of dégorgement (disgorging). But while other producers discard it, Piquentum embraced it as proof of authenticity. This post-fermentation sediment was used to create the wine’s label, resulting in the first label literally made by the wine itself. Depending on the environment, the label continues to develop, acting as a living entity and becoming a valuable proof of authenticity.
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!
