TBWA\ expands post production unit BOLT to KL

TBWA\ has expanded its post production unit BOLT into Kuala Lumpur, with business director and executive producer Nisha Khirudin (pictured top left) at the helm. Nisha joined the agency in 2018 and has over 20 years of experience, previously co-owning Anothother Planet production company. The team comprises content director Ahmad Mo Nazmi (pictured bottom right), content artist Micheal Lim (pictured bottom left), as wellas Fadhil Samah (pictured top right) and Alya Zainudin (pictured top centre) from the art and copy team.

In a statement to A+M, MD Yee Hui Tsin (pictured bottom centre) said the plan to launch BOLT in Kuala Lumpur was 12 months in the making. It held back from announcing the new capabilities last year because it wanted to launch with sustainable pieces of work backed by the right teams to lead the units. BOLT first launched in Singapore and Hong Kong in 2018, with Sung Lin Gun leading it as regional head. According to Yee, TBWA\KL will leverage the BOLT collective across the region when the occasion and opportunity arises, to have a larger scale of capabilities.

Clients that have tapped on BOLT's capabilities include PepsiCo's Tropicana Juice, Carsome and IPC Shopping Centre. Last Christmas, IPC Shopping Centre worked with BOLT to produce a 16-second animated video about kindness and compassion.

https://www.facebook.com/ipcshoppingcentre/videos/2525018407775229

Separately, the team also thought out of the box and produced a tongue-in-cheek Chinese New Year video out of their own accord titled "Jho Please Come Home", inspired by the notorious fugutive named Jho Low who came under the spotlight for his involvement in 1MDB.

Yee explained that with Chinese New Year being the season of films, it was a great opportunity for BOLT to showcase its unique capabilities. However, it is hard to stand out without any clients or a budget. As such, it chose to create something different that could strike a chord with Malaysians rather than a typical festive film.

"We know what it feels like to celebrate Chinese New Year alone. And Low, who is on the run, has no chance of spending Chinese New Year with his family. Those who have a home to return to, often times, take this for granted. So we decided to tell this story in a tongue-in-cheek manner to show how fortunate people are to have a home to return to. And who knows? Maybe Low will feel touched and finally come home after watching the video," Ahmad Mo Nazmi said.

Separately, TBWA\ also launched its design unit named Design by Disruption (DxD) late last year, led by chief creative officer Gigi Lee. There are currently six individuals in the team, who were handpicked and nurtured by Lee. So far, it has worked on Sarawak Tourism Board's indigenous project, as well as designed for MySlangBank. Currently, both Lee and Nisha report to Yee. According to Yee, TBWA\KL expects BOLT and DxD to contribute 50% of its new business target.

Yee, who officially took on the MD role in October 2018, told A+M previously that TBWA\ is optimistic in truly pushing bold ideas that go far beyond traditional advertising.

She explained that her definition of "bold work" means work that gets into social conversations, shifts businseses and has a glocal impact. "I believe BOLT and DxD can deliver that distinctive disruption to move the Malaysian ad industry," she added.

With the industry constantly changing, Yee believes that gencies need to be braver and bolder, be more inclusive and look beyond the ad industry, as well as stand up for issues that affect the world at large.