Jacob's puts spin to iconic patriotic song to get Malaysians moving ahead of Merdeka Day

Jacob’s, known for its cream crackers, hopes to inspire Malaysians to “start moving the good way” with the launch of its #GerakanKebaikan64 Merdeka campaign in commemoration of Malaysia’s 64th independence day. The campaign was done in collaboration with Leo Burnett Malaysia.

In a four-part video series, the campaign features a new rendition of the patriotic song "Tanggal 31 Ogos" by the late singer Sudirman. The spots feature a stop-motion series of figures working out in various exercises such as planking, push-ups and yoga, with the cream crackers as a canvas for the animation. Through this initiative, Jacob’s hopes to mark the first step of the next phase of their journey in helping Malaysia snack better and live healthier lives.

According to the brand, the goal is to “inspire all Malaysians to rise up, unite and make their first move in whatever way they choose to move this Merdeka, even in the confines of their homes during the country’s current lockdown”. The film was done by Directors ThinkTank’s Maurice Noone, and scored by Real Time Studios in Malaysia.

David HK Tan, creative group head, Leo Burnett Malaysia said that the agency arrived at the idea of using Tanggal 31 because of what it meant to Malaysians at this time of year, and how only it had the power to move the nation not only emotionally but also physically.

“When rewriting the lyrics, our goal was for it to become a rallying cry that would unite us through Jacob’s message to make the first move together and set the nation on a healthier course for the years to come,” said copywriters Amin Sharipuddin and Matthew Yeo.

“It’s always a privilege to work on a film that updates a classic song. Add a stop-motion animation style, plus several dozen Jacob’s crackers, and the result had my three-year-old daughter singing along with the new updated lyrics every time I looked at the edit!” said Noone. “I hope that the film will be equally catchy for the general viewing public, and help motivate people to get up and go.”

Two years ago, the brand rolled out a commercial showcasing how various Malaysian icons were sketched out and engraved on Jacob’s Original Cream Cracker, as part of its #TheOriginals campaign for Merdeka Day. Computer graphics were used for the pre-visualisation to determine the placement of the cracker, the movement of the camera and timing aspect. Various engraving techniques were tried out for two months, and laser engraving was eventually used for the shoot.

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