| 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: Mi Nguyen
Origin: Can Tho City, Vietnam
Places lived/worked: Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Pronouns: She/her
CV: Senior copywriter, Happiness Saigon (2023-present)
1. How did you end up being a creative?
I got a trainee editor position at a local e-magazine. After getting to know impressive campaigns, bold ideas, jaw-dropping copy, and provoking commercials, I wanted to create things that others would also find enticing.
2. What's your favourite piece of work in your portfolio?
'The Fire Walkers.' The toughest book ever made. It's a campaign we made for H Cookware.
The task was to prove the durability of the pans. We sent the pans to where they would “suffer” the most—in the makeshift kitchens of street food vendors, where cooks serve hundreds, sometimes thousands of portions every day.
For the second phase of the campaign, we created 'The Fire Walkers.' The book was made from the same stainless steel as the H Cookware pans, containing stories of resilient street chefs. We then put the book through five tests: heat, corrosion, scratch, impact, and deformation to test its strength. The after-test books were displayed at famous restaurants around town.
3. What's your favourite piece of work created by someone else?
I don’t have an all-time favourite. It changes from time to time. My most recent favourite is 'The Final Copy of Ilon Specht'. It’s one of those enticing works that fuel my passion to create ads that matter.
And the most charming thing I find about it is that you don’t have to work in the industry to be captivated by this film.
4. What kind of student were you?
Straight-A, quiet, leaning on the nerdy side. I studied because I liked studying (still do, actually). You wouldn’t find me at school activities unless it was some kind of academic competition.
5. What's the craziest thing you've ever done?
Relocating to another city without a concrete plan. I had thoughts about moving, but they were all just considerations until, at one point, a voice inside me just said, “Okay, you’re moving there next month.”
6. What's on your bucket list?
Watching the 25th anniversary performance of the 'Phantom of the Opera' live at the Royal Albert Hall. That performance actually happened 14 years ago. But who knows, either a time machine will be invented in my lifetime, or the 25th anniversary cast reunites for a special show, or the whole thing gets VR. Well, who knows?
7. Who’s on your dream dinner guest list (alive or dead)?
Me, 30 years from now. I’ve always wanted to know what it feels like to actually converse with myself, as well as see the different perspectives we (well, me and me) can come up with on a problem.
8. Who is/was the most important person in your life?
My granddad. He was a quiet man. I spent the majority of my early childhood alongside him, since he was the only stay-at-home family member back then.
We would just situate ourselves at the front of the house, me on the floor playing make-believe, him in his wooden lounger, smoking or trying to craft things from discarded gadgets and gizmos he collected.
He didn’t intentionally teach me anything, but I learnt a lot from him.
9. What career did you think you'd have when you were a kid?
A doctor. I thought doctors were super cool—they give whatever advice whenever you need them!
10. Do you work best under pressure or when things are calm?
I’d prefer calm, because it allows me to think, explore, redo, or even start over.
11. What advice would you give to a 10-year-old you, if you could?
Keep watching movies and reading books. It’s okay if you don’t get them. You’ll see how they would be helpful in the next 15 years.
