Cannes' best of the best were ads that touched the heart

• Ads that promoted self esteem%2C touted safety and celebrated diversity nabbed big honors
• In a cluttered media environment%2C it often takes an emotional message to noticed%2C says an ad pro
• Cannes ad festival wraps up on Saturday

CANNES — Commercials with a social conscience took the spotlight on the last day of the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity.

Ads that promoted self-esteem, touted safety and celebrated diversity nabbed some of the most prestigious honors on Saturday, as the world's largest advertising awards and trade show wrapped up.

Many of the top winners still pitched commercial products and services, including women's personal care products, computer chips, a laptop and a television station's programming. Yet, rather than hawking aggressively, the marketing campaigns used a more heartfelt approach to garner the consumer's attention.

In a cluttered media environment, it often takes an emotional message to get a company's brand noticed, says Lisa Bennett, a jury member and executive vice president of creative at ad agency DDB Worldwide.

"It's harder and harder to connect with people," she says. "When (a marketing campaign) touches an emotional chord, it stands out."

A look at Saturday's big winners:

Dove "Real Beauty Sketches." Dove used a forensic sketch artist to show women that they are often too critical of themselves. The artist first drew the women according to their own self-descriptions, and then sketched the woman again after a stranger described them. (The artist didn't see the women he was drawing in person.) The sketches reflecting the women's self-descriptions were much less attractive than the ones based on the stranger's characterization.

The takeaway: Many women don't realize their true beauty. The campaign won the Grand Prix in the Titanium, which honors novel, innovative marketing. Titanium jury President Dan Wieden, co-founder of ad firm Wieden+Kennedy, said the campaign stood out because it put forth a message that would truly help consumers. It was created by Ogilvy & Mather, Brazil.

Channel 4's "Meet the Superhumans Paralympics." This ad from British TV station Channel 4 touts its coverage of 2012 London Paralympic Games by showcasing the powerful abilities of Great Britain's leading paralympians. Wheelchair-bound athletes aggressively play basketball and volleyball, and amputees skillfully sprint down a track. The ad's background music is Public Enemy's gritty Harder Than You Think. The commercial, directed Tom Tagholm, deems the athletes "superhumans." The ad won the Grand Prix in the Film Craft category, which examines and honors the best techniques used in the filmmaking process, such as photography, copywriting, editing and sound design.

Toshiba/Intel's "The Beauty Inside." This Internet campaign told the story of Alex, a guy who wakes up every day with the same personality, but in a different body. He keeps a daily diary on his unusual life on his Toshiba Ultrabook computer. Consumers were encouraged to get involved with the campaign by sending in videos of themselves playing Alex's character or by weighing in via Facebook with thoughts on what it meant to have an individual identity.

The campaign, which plays off the "Intel Inside" slogan, won a Grand Prix in the Branded Content and Entertainment category, which honors brands that create or skillfully integrate their message into original content. In addition, it also won a Grand Prix in the Film category. It was created by Pereira & O'Dell in San Francisco.

Melbourne Trains' "Dumb ways to Die." This safety campaign features animated blobs that get killed after doing something dumb, such as swimming with piranhas or acting unsafely around trains. A TV spot, YouTube videos, outdoor ads, iPhone and iPad apps and a dedicated website at DumbWaysToDie.com took the campaign's message across a multitude of platforms. Campaign creator McCann Melbourne won the Grand Prix in both the Film and Integrated Marketing categories, the latter of which recognizes the use of different media channels. Earlier in the week, the campaign nabbed the Grand Prix in the public relations, direct marketing and radio categories.

Follow Laura Petrecca on Twitter @LauraPetrecca