Canada Must Select “Ideas with Afterlife” to Succeed at The Immortal Awards

Like many in the industry, Graham Lang is suffering from “prototype fatigue”, and finds himself increasingly sceptical of ideas that are “just famous on LinkedIn”.

Fortunately, the chief creative officer of VML Canada is in a good place to do something about this. Having been selected to the Canadian jury for The Immortal Awards 2026, he’ll be one of the voices that decides what work from the past year deserves to be lauded, not just locally, but on the global stage.

“It’s a real honour, and a lovely reminder that, occasionally, this business lets you sit in a room and argue passionately about ads,” he says, speaking on his appointment. “The Immortals are exciting because they ask the scary question, ‘Will this idea still matter once the case-film glow wears off?’. That’s the work I’m interested in – ideas with an afterlife. It’s the Immortals, after all.”

Ahead of the September 4th entry deadline, the CCO already has a firm idea of the qualities he hopes to see in the submitted creative. No stranger to evaluating immortal work – having previously served on the jury in 2023 – he boils it down to three simple concepts which, ideally, must coexist if the work is to have a chance at success.

“Immortal work has an idea you can explain in one sentence, and that sentence makes people want to see the work,” Graham explains. “It feels fresh, brave and oddly inevitable. It makes the brand more interesting and magnetic. And it has staying power, whether it be culturally, emotionally or commercially.”

Distilled into a single example, prospective entrants are invited to look at the ‘Got Milk?’ campaign’s ‘Aaron Burr’ spot, which he defines as the quintessential definition of this brief.


However, the VML leader won’t be walking into judging having already built “a tiny podium” in his head, despite the international acclaim Canada’s marketing has received over the past year.

Specifically, he points to the “encouraging year” the country has had at the likes of Cannes Lions, noting that, despite the sense of confidence and the distinctive, culturally sure nature of the creative, it’s important to look past the shiny bits as best one can.

“A beautifully produced nothing is still, nothing,” he adds. “The best work usually has a simple thought running right through it. The kind that makes you annoyed you didn’t think of it first. I’d rather see the work fresh, hear the discussion, and let whatever has the sharpest idea, the strongest craft, and the most human touch win me over in the room. What I am looking for is real work for real problems. Ideas that showed up in the real world. I want to reward big ideas, at scale, that are real and relevant to the target audience.”

Graham also cautions that a “Cannes hangover” can be both a good and bad thing for the Canadian jury. While he anticipates that already-decorated creative should continue to show up well – “it already survived the rosé and the heat,” he laughs – it’s important to consider that some of the country’s sharpest, most nuanced ideas don’t always land perfectly in France.

“Sometimes, the joke, the tension, or the very Canadian weirdness needs a bit more local oxygen,” he says. “Hopefully, the best of what did shine at Cannes and the best work that maybe couldn’t fully translate there comes through here.”

It’s an especially well-informed opinion, given Graham’s experience working across international markets such as the UK and South Africa. No stranger to regional variants of creativity, here, he hopes the jury will look to celebrate work that actually speaks to the nature of Canadian creativity as a whole, rather than only submitting prior winners.

However, the CCO is optimistic that his fellow jurors will have ample selection to choose from. Following Canada being named the 2025 Immortal Awards’ most creative country in the world, he suggests qualities like emotion, empathy and simplicity will be the reasons why this year’s batch of local work will continue to travel well.

“Basically, we’re good at it all!” he emphasises. “So, I think we’re well suited to compete and hopefully go deep into the latter rounds.”

While only time will tell whether this comes to fruition, one way or another, Graham is simply excited to be tasked with looking at the very best in Canadian creativity, alongside his peers. Contemplating what excites him about having an opportunity like this, he shares that sitting in a room with “smart, opinionated people” and getting to talk about great work all day is one of the most “delightfully selfish” things one can do in this business.

“It’s basically a professional development seminar with extremely strong opinions and occasional sulking,” the CCO concludes. “I’m looking forward to the work, the debate, and those rare magical moments when a room full of advertising people somehow find alignment.”