FCB Kuala Lumpur shows that progress requires a soul

A campaign created by FCB Kuala Lumpur for RHB Bank for Chinese New Year puts family love at the forefront.

The main character is a girl named Leah Choy, who develops the skill of baking cookies to help raise funds for the treatment of her sister with cerebral palsy.

The commercial has a movie structure that gradually introduces heroes, with an emphasis on the character of a girl who makes cookies and communicates with her absent sister via laptop. From her story, we learn that her sister is sick and suffering frequent medical interventions, but motivates Leah to move forward and fix her own mistakes. However, it is only at the end that the touching scene of the two sisters' encounter reveals the nature of the illness and the reason why Leah becomes a master baker.

The symbolism of the heart with which the girl decorates her cakes is significant. Inside the big red heart is a little blue one, and the hearts represent her and her sister. Leah initially fails to create strong hearts that will not break, but over time she finds a solution to this problem. The subtle message we get is that those who do not give up on their noble ideas strengthen their hearts with every obstacle they beat.

It is additionally interesting that the story is true, and the little pastry chef is now ten years old, while she started making cookies as a four-year-old girl. The RHB Group wants to draw attention to her project, support her progress and Leah’s care for her sister. Co-owner and Chief Creative Officer at FCB Kuala Lumpur, Ong Shi Ping, said that at FCB Kuala Lumpur they wanted the story to motivate viewers to progress through love.

The message "Progress is about not giving up on what you hold dear" ending the advertisement is inspiring, and with a strong personal story, the campaign provoked positive reactions in the festive season during which it appeared. On the RHB Group's Facebook page, this video currently has over 1 million and 200 thousand views, with the YouTube channel approaching the first million.

FCB Kuala Lumpur inspired us with the story of a little girl called Leah and reminded us that we can always find a way to help those we love, at least by always being there for them. We believe that marketing campaigns that encourage us to be better people should always be praised.

News about this campaign can be found on marketing portals The Drum and Camapaign Asia.