The Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc in Antibes has seen a party or two in its time — but Tuesday night’s UTA & DoorDash Ads Executive Soirée gave the legendary venue a run for its money, attracting Cannes Lions 2026 headliners, star talent and advertising industry heavyweights to its famous terrace for a night that was equal parts business and spectacle.
Among the list of power brokers who mingled in the UTA and DoorDash Ads Executive Soirée were the likes of UTA CEO David Cramer, UTA COO Bob Roback, UTA President Paul Wachter, UTA Vice President Jay Sures, UTA Chief Communications Officer Cassandra Pojarski, Toby Espinoza, DoorDash Ads VP, DoorDash CMO Tim Castree, DoorDash VP of Enterprise Advertising Sales Dan Ackerman, VP Apple Senior President Services & Health Eddy Cue – Who is Cannes Lions Entertainment Personality of the Year – UTA UK President Darnell Strom, Raina Pinchansky, Co-President of UTA Creators and CEO and Co-Founder of Digital Brand Architects and Michael Knopf, Senior Vice President of UTA’s MediaLink Marketing Transformation Practice.
The brand side was equally well represented, with Behnaz Ghahramani, senior vice president of global marketing at Marriott International, Moonbug Entertainment’s global business president Dan’l Hewitt and Drew Panayiotou, chief marketing and innovation officer at Keurig Dr Pepper, among those in the room.
The celebrity squad was also hard to miss. UTA clients Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Elle Fanning, Janelle Monáe, Karlie Kloss and Don Lemon were among those working the balcony, while Alan Cumming — who wore shorts so effortlessly that at least two people were heard complimenting his style — and Paris Hilton, who entered by boat, brought their own brand of flair. JB Smoove, wearing one of his signature hats, briefly placed it on this writer’s head to prove that anyone can imitate it.
UTA’s star roster of creatives also made a big splash at the event, with the likes of Mel Robbins, Quentin Blackwell, Brandon Edelman, aka Bran Flakes, Connor Wood, aka @fibula, and Amiraa Vee chatting at the Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc. Lindsey Vonn and Draymond Green were among the names lending the event some star power from the world of sports.
Also among the notable talent from UTA’s roster of clients who brought their energy to Hotel Antibes were Ademola Lookman, Aimee Smale, Anthony Ramos, Ashley Graham, Brittany Broski, Clea Shearer, Colin Rosenblum, Connor Wood, David Dobrik, GirlBossTown, Greta Louise Tome, Gstaad Guy, Joanna Teplin, Johnny Harris, Josh Richards, Kara Swisher, Kate. Bartlett, Meredith Marks, Olandria Carthen, Samir Chowdhury, Serena Kerrigan, Sharif O’Neill, and Timothy Simons.
There were many happy guests at the soiree, but there was only one Ludacris. The rapper and actor took the party to the next level, working the crowd through a set of singles and collaborations including “All I Do Is Win,” “Act a Fool,” “Area Codes,” “Break Your Heart,” and “Tonight (I’m Lovin’ You)” that got even the VIP section moving
Ludacris also wowed the audience with tributes to UTA and Cap-Eden-Roc Hotel, and reminded the audience that he has appeared in seven films. Fast and furious Movies when he sang the song “Act a Fool” from 2 Fast 2 FuriousIt is the first film in the series where he appeared as Tig Parker. “Yes FAst & Angry Fans at home?!” he asked from the stage and got some cheers.
Among the evening food options are falafel, miniburgers, and salmon on potato cubes. Additionally, the caviar station, which included a caviar-topped ice cream option for a little more adventure, was a popular spot for partygoers to check out and sample.
Earlier in the evening, UTA President Kramer took a moment, despite the huge demand for his attention, to explain why the company had decided to have its largest presence ever at this year’s Cannes Lions Festival. “Our thesis has long been that the convergence of brands — film, entertainment, sports, music, comedy, fashion, creatives and technology — has everything going its way, and I think this year embodies that thesis like we’ve never seen it before,” he said. THR. “We have our largest presence. We have over 100 agents and executives here at Cannes Lions this year. We have over 125 clients here. Almost every department of the agency is represented. It’s not about one silo or one sector; it’s about all these different groups and how they work together, certainly in terms of how they interact with the brands. We’ve built our culture of collaboration, and you’re seeing it in action now.”
His team’s goal with the UTA Beach headquarters at Cannes Lions was to make meetings simple and open up opportunities. “We built a two-story building, and there are thousands of people coming there all week,” Kramer said. “The efficiency of being here with all these different companies and all these different talents means that every day at Cannes Lions is like a year of the dog. One day feels like 10 days.”
