Brendan Gaul is Global Chief Entertainment Officer at McCann, where he develops original narrative, unscripted, and theatrical projects under the TRAVERSE32 banner, a New York based global branded entertainment production company and development studio that he co-founded and where he serves as Co-President. An award-winning producer, his work has been honored at Cannes Lions, Festival de Cannes, Sundance, Tribeca, and is included in MoMA’s Permanent Collection. Gaul produced the groundbreaking documentary 5B—the first brand-funded film selected by Cannes—earning a Lions Grand Prix and other top honors. His recent credits include the 2025 Cannes Lions Film Grand Prix-winning short The Final Copy of Ilon Specht, DEAR SANTA (film and Hulu series), and Queen of New York. With a career spanning McCann, UM, IPG Mediabrands and Omnicom, he has built globally recognized content. A sought out speaker and jurist, Gaul’s served as a juror at the Palmer Awards for Marketing (2025), has been an annual featured presenter and member of the entertainment jury at Tribeca X (2022-2024), sits on the Advisory Board for Brand Storytelling at Sundance and is a longstanding member of its Sundance Selection Committee, was named Brand Film/Campaign U.S. Jury President (2022), juried for NY Festivals TV & Film Awards (2023), was a member of the Telly Awards Jury Council (2022), and served on the Cannes Lions Entertainment Jury (2015). He's presented at both Brand Storytelling at Sundance and the Elevate Conference for the past 10 years, and is an annual speaker at various industry events during Cannes Lions, CES and SXSW.