SEGA will host an official session at Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity 2026, marking the first time a Japanese game company has hosted an official session at the global creative festival.
The session, titled The Sonic Effect: How Japan’s Fandom Culture Elevates Playful Worlds, will take place on Friday, June 26, 2026 from 11:15 AM to 11:45 AM local time at The Forum, Rotonde, inside the Palais des Festivals in Cannes, France.
The panel will focus on Sonic the Hedgehog as the character celebrates his 35th anniversary in 2026. SEGA says the session will look back at Sonic’s path from a Japanese game icon to a global entertainment brand, while also exploring how fandom, storytelling, playfulness, and cultural resonance have helped shape the franchise’s continued evolution.
SEGA is also placing emphasis on the fact that Sonic’s journey has not always been straightforward. The session will discuss how global fan support helped the franchise keep moving through challenges, eventually leading into the success of the 2020 Hollywood film and Sonic’s broader worldwide expansion across games, movies, animation, merchandise, music, and live events.
The session will feature SEGA President and Chief Operating Officer Shuji Utsumi, alongside Takashi Iizuka, Executive Officer and Sonic Creative Officer. PR strategist Tetsuya Honda, CEO of Honda Office, will serve as moderator.
Utsumi’s appearance gives the panel a wider SEGA perspective. His career includes work at Sony during the launch of the original PlayStation business, contributions to SEGA’s Dreamcast era, involvement with Disney Interactive Asia and Kingdom Hearts, the founding of Q Entertainment, and later executive roles before returning to SEGA. Since becoming SEGA’s President and COO in April 2024, he has been closely tied to the company’s global IP strategy, including Sonic and the revival of legacy franchises such as Crazy Taxi, SHINOBI, Virtua Fighter, and Jet Set Radio.
Iizuka has been one of the key creative figures behind Sonic since the 1990s, working across the series as a designer, director, and producer before becoming the overall producer for Sonic games in 2010. He is now based in Los Angeles and oversees the Sonic brand across games, mobile titles, film, animation, and other media.
Cannes Lions is one of the world’s largest creative festivals, bringing together creators, brands, marketers, and business leaders to discuss major shifts in advertising, entertainment, innovation, and brand experiences. SEGA’s session will be part of the Insights & Trends content stream, which focuses on the cultural, consumer, and creative forces shaping the industry.
With Sonic now reaching his 35th anniversary, the panel positions the franchise not only as a long-running game series, but as an example of how game-born IP can grow into a global cultural brand through fan support and multimedia storytelling.
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