Game On Ball - Cannes Lions Win (Press Release)
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
J3P INC. Celebrates Bronze Win and Multiple Shortlists at the 2026 Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity for "Game On Ball" Campaign
TORONTO, ON — [2, July 2026] — J3P INC. is proud to announce its vital role in the widely acclaimed "Game On Ball" campaign, which took home a Bronze Lion and earned a prestigious Shortlist distinction at the 2026 Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. Developed in collaboration with Dentsu Creative and TRUE Hockey, the innovative campaign was recognized on the world’s most elite stage for advertising and design excellence.
The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity is the global benchmark for creative excellence, making this a monumental milestone for the J3P INC. team. The campaign successfully merged physical engineering, digital innovation, and advocacy to tackle a major modern issue: the quiet erasure of a beloved neighborhood tradition in Canada.
Reclaiming the Streets for the Next Generation
As navigation apps increasingly route drivers through residential shortcuts—a phenomenon known as "rat-running"—neighborhood streets have become high-traffic corridors, driving kids indoors and ending the tradition of street hockey.
To combat this, J3P INC. worked alongside Dentsu Creative, TAG Canada, and Pirate Sound to bring TRUE Hockey’s vision to life with the Game On Ball. The first-of-its-kind technology prototype contains an integrated controller, a wireless charging LiPo battery, and a vibration trigger. When kids strike the ball to play, it alerts a base platform which sends live data to a server running virtual machines. This ingenious hack simulates a traffic jam on popular navigation apps, successfully redirecting commuter traffic back to major arteries and keeping neighbourhood children safe.
Backed by Olympic Gold Medalists Natalie Spooner and Kelly Pannek, the campaign drove massive public engagement via its interactive website (TrueGameOn.com), encouraging a national conversation and petitioning navigation apps to introduce an "Avoid Residential Streets" toggle.
Driving Industry Acclaim & Creative Innovation
"We are absolutely thrilled by the recognition at Cannes Lions and the trust from our friends at Dentsu Creative," said James Hall, Director at J3P INC. "Collaborating with the brilliant creative minds at Dentsu Creative and a legacy-driven brand like TRUE Hockey allowed us to demonstrate how technology can solve real-world community problems. Winning a Bronze Lion is a testament to the greater team’s dedication to pushing technical and creative boundaries."
"The technical execution required to seamlessly trick complex routing algorithms in real-time was incredibly challenging, and the success of 'Game On Ball' at Cannes underscores the power of combining great storytelling with cutting-edge engineering," added Rob Lazar, Executive Producer at Dentsu Creative.
The "Game On Ball" campaign was previously heralded as a top Canadian and global contender heading into the festival, featured by leading industry publications such as Little Black Book (LBB Online) and Shots.
To learn more about the technology behind the campaign, visit TrueGameOn.com. For more information about J3P INC. and their capabilities, please visit J3P.ca.
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About J3P INC. J3P INC. is a premier, boutique creative agency specializing in creative development and production. Based in Canada, J3P INC. connects industry-leading brands with photographers, directors, and creators who push the boundaries of modern storytelling.
Media Contact: Ilja Lukac, Executive Producer J3P INC. Ilja@j3p.ca J3P.ca