Cannes Lions 2026 - Beyond Perfection: Reframing Intimacy, Identity and Representation

24 June 2026

Empower Café hosted a - hot, in more ways than one - conversation between Cindy Gallop, founder and CEO of MakeLoveNotPorn, Kate Chaundry, Associate Director of Propeller Group, and Katie Street founder of Street Agency.

This session at Cannes Lions 2026 tackled big questions: who taught us what love, sex, beauty, and success should look like and is it time to rewrite the script? Can brands shape healthier attitudes towards intimacy without losing relevance? And what does authentic representation really mean?

It opened lightly, with familiar but impactful reminders, before Cindy Gallop urged the audience to “speak their truth” - a principle she lives by. Her version of self-care? No husband, no children, and no interest in falling in love. She’s unapologetic in expressing beliefs that sit outside societal norms.

For Gallop, rewriting the narrative around sex isn’t just talk. Through MakeLoveNotPorn, she aims to counter mainstream porn by “offering sex education through real-world demonstration,” with an explicit mission to help end rape culture globally.

Yet, she argues, brands are “spectacularly” failing to engage with one of the most influential cultural forces shaping young people today: porn. Despite its impact on relationships and expectations, it’s absent from briefs, research, marketing and product design. Her example: the car industry. In many markets - from conservative societies to cost-of-living-hit Western ones - cars are a primary space for intimacy. Still, this reality is ignored in both design and marketing. Brands would rather leave money on the table than go near this subject.

Gallop encouraged attendees to use spaces like Cannes to talk openly about sex, challenging the shame that surrounds it. Being at ease with every part of yourself can be transformative inside and outside the bedroom. Chaundry added an important caveat: have these conversations with discernment. In a world where counter moves need just as much as consideration as the first move, it's easy to see why so many feel paralysed to make any move at all.

Cindy Gallop

Practical change, Gallop argued, starts early. Age-appropriate sex education, open communication, and giving young people real sexual agency are critical to countering harmful narratives online. With sextortion on the rise - particularly affecting boys, who often suffer in silence and lack impulse control - the stakes are urgent and real. A toxic cocktail translating to boys committing suicide after a sextortion threat.

Ultimately, fostering a culture that can talk honestly about sex has far-reaching potential: healthier attitudes towards sex, more equal societies, and untapped opportunities for brands. It's very simple in theory. Far more complex in practice.