Nigerian filmmaker Ibidunni Oladayo made a major achievement at the 2026 Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, bagging up five awards for his Unilever Vaseline commercial.
The campaign, produced by Ama Psalmist Visuals, uniquely depicted creativity and drew attention to viewers, enough to bag awards. By taking the infamous “Nigerian Prince” email scam and clever juicily pairing it with a message about authenticating genuine Vaseline products, the ad struck gold, literally.
The commercial won one Gold award in the Social & Creator category, and also won four Bronze awards in the Media, Health & Wellness, Brand Experience, and Healthcare, making a total of 5 awards, 1 gold and 4 bronzes.
It wasn’t just a coincidental success, because the wins were attributed to the audience’s love for it. The campaign got over 2.8 million organic views in just 10 days, driving roughly 5,400 product conversions in the same window.
For Oladayo, the magic was all in the script. “It was the story,” he said, recalling when he first saw the creative brief. The director credited the project’s success to a simple message, a dedicated production crew, and a seamless global collaboration with agencies Leo Burnett Singapore, MSL Singapore, and Persuasion Communications London.
More than anything, Oladayo sees the wins as proof that local narratives hold global weight. He has long believed that when African stories are told with genuine honesty and craft, they can compete on any world stage.
“What started out as an attempt to rewrite a narrative and carve a new perception for a country and a brand has turned out to be a five-time Cannes Lions winner,” Oladayo added. “But it’s nothing close to serendipity.”
