The Mobile Marketing Association made a splash at Cannes in late June, during -- as it is formally known – the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity.

In partnership with the Cannes Lions, the MMA and member sponsors hosted “Chief Creatives on the Beach,” a series of daily lunchtime panels at the MMA’s Beach Club along the Croisette. Featuring some of the ad industry’s most insightful Chief Creative Officers from around the world, they covered topics including why creativity matters, who’s best at being creative, how creativity is changing, what can go wrong, and creativity and globalization. Featured panelists including Ray Chin, Chief Creative Officer, Sapient China, Laura Jordan Bambach, Creative Partner at London’s Mr. President and Eduardo Maruri, CEO and CCO of Ecuador’s Maruri Grey.

While the panels provided time for thought, there was time for fun as well. On the night of Tuesday, June 21, the MMA Beach Club was the site of a cocktail party for 130 festival attendees. It was a wonderful opportunity for MMA members across the globe to casually connect.

Special thanks to the sponsors of the MMA Beach Club: DataXu, DStillery, Tune, Krux and Flipboard.

But, of course, Cannes is ultimately about awards. For some mobile inspiration, check out the category winners here, and congratulations to all MMA member companies whose work was awarded at the Festival.

Don’t forget that the MMA’s Smarties Awards Gala – the world's only global mobile marketing awards program honoring innovation, creativity, and success – will be held on Monday, September 26 during Advertising Week in New York. The final deadline for entries is Friday, July 22.