Creative Minds: Naomi Wei is motivated by meaning

In Creative Minds, we ask APAC creatives a long list of questions, from serious to silly, and ask them to pick 11 to answer. (Why 11? Just because.) Want to be featured?

Name: Naomi Wei

Origin: Shandong, China

Places lived/worked: Shanghai, Shandong

Pronouns: She/her

CV:

• Copywriter, DDB, Shanghai (2021 to present)
• Content writer, Bluefocus, Shanghai (2019 to 2021)

1. How did you end up being a creative?

I was born to be creative. Creativity is natural, anyone can be as creative as they want unless they don’t want to show it.

2. What's your favourite piece of work in your portfolio?

Skittles Gummi Ads: As easy to pinch as your face.

[Editor's note: Perhaps not fully appreciating the Chinese-language copy, Campaign's ad critic Ad Nut did not care for the visuals in the above campaign. See: "Why associate Skittles with pimples?"]

3. What's your favourite piece of work created by someone else?

De Beers: A diamond is forever. The ads has created a new desire for diamonds, it changed the purchasing behaviour of consumers for good. 

4. What career did you think you'd have when you were a kid?

The owner of a canteen next to a primary school. I would let the kids exchange jokes for snacks.

5. What advice would you give to 10-year-old you, if you could?

Repeating homework is not going to make or break your future. Go outside and play, just protect yourself against the sun. Your 24-year-old self is making up for all the time you spent indoors avoiding it!

6. What would you do on your perfect day?

Get 7.5 hours sleep and have breakfast, lunch, and dinner on time, like a normal person. Read a book, do some exercise, take a long stroll in the afternoon, chat to a stranger…

7. What food can you not live without?

Cream. It’s my narcotic. Simple but very effective at generating dopamine.

8. What food would you be happy to never taste again?

Medicine. Just on the off chance that this might happen for me one day!

9. What's your guilty pleasure?

Gossip on social media. It’s not meaningful at all, but there’s just something so intriguing about spying on other’s people’s lives.

10. What really motivates you?

When I feel that what I’m doing is meaningful and valuable, I feel very motivated.

11. Cats or dogs?

Definitely cats! I just brought home a new kitty last year, and she would no doubt be upset if I said dogs.