PRIVATE VIEW: Lo Sheung Yan, head of creative at J. Walter Thompson, Shanghai

Good-looking talent, nice photography and thought-provoking headlines make this Wing Tai campaign very eye-catching. The selling proposition also appeals to the mentality of Hong Kong people. I must admit that although I am also a finished product of the famous British colonial education system, I am not very familiar with what's typical in England. I am only familiar with the Premier League, Manchester United and David Beckham. So I might have missed the English humour behind these ads for Soho Soho restaurant. But the idea is dead simple and even an innocent Hong Konger like me can understand it. It has got a very good platform on which it was built. But I wish the execution had incorporated a bit more wit, fun and a twist. When I saw this ad, I was reminded of the Hong Kong 4As Creative Awards entry kit, which was blasted for being racist and in bad taste. Is the Pizza Hut spot discriminating against gays and making fun of them? I tend to think deep, much deeper than I used to when looking at ads. My conclusion is that the script and the delivery are very suggestive. But the directing of the actor is very controlled and careful. To me, it is too careful and the storyline is almost lost. But if I have an idea which is half-heartedly executed, I would prefer going back to the drawing board and starting again. Raw. Rude. In your face. Something you rarely find in Taiwan advertising. Perhaps that's the reason why the launch of Next was so impactful. The ads have stated very clearly what the tone and manner of the magazine would be. And in order to make a solid first step in the media environment in Taiwan, which is highly competitive, I understand that the creative has to be very different. But as a very personal taste, I prefer the 'bold' approach to the 'loud' approach. To me, when I compare the Taiwan launch with the Hong Kong launch many years ago, I find Next has become even more extreme and very desperate. A salute to the Singapore Airlines' "Singapore Girl". It's every creative's dream to come up with a campaign which can live forever. Creating a campaign like this is difficult. The dilemma comes from the fact that while you have to be loyal to all the existing elements in the campaign, you don't want to be limited by them. The use of a movie poster to promote an airline's inflight entertainment system is nothing special but the twist is that the Singapore Girl snares King Kong and not the other way around. But the friendly smile and the subtlety of the Singapore Girl has not helped the ad to leap out. I wonder whether, as the world is evolving at an ever-faster pace, the Singapore Girl's personality should be made more contemporary. The challenge of this assignment is to revive the image of Yellow Pages, making it part of people's lives again. The execution, revealing that Yellow Pages is also available online, is new. However, the rest of the campaign repeats what the product has been offering since its launch. What we really need is to find a new angle to re-position the role of the product in people's lives. Although the style of animation is quite interesting, it cannot save the day. 1. WING TAI Project: The Waterfront "Labels" campaign Client: Wing Tai Asia Brief: Promote Wing Tai's newest property Agency: M&C Saatchi Hong Kong Copywriter: Andy Wong Art director: Jeanie Tan Photographer: Ken Arthur Exposure: Newspapers and magazines 2. SOHO SOHO Project: Not Typically British Client: Soho Soho Brief: Differentiate the brand from other British dining establishments Agency: D'Arcy Hong Kong Creative director: Marc Lucas Copywriter, art director and illustrator: Sam Martin Exposure: English newspapers 3. PIZZA HUT Project: Seafood Salad Pizza Client: Pizza Hut Brief: New product launch Agency: WBA Hong Kong Creative director: Lee Chun Chung Production House: Film Five TV Exposure: Television 4. NEXT Project: Taiwan launch campaign Client: Next Brief: Position Next as a controversial and cutting edge magazine Agency: Saatchi & Saatchi Taiwan Creative directors: Vincent Wu, Nadia Au Copywriter: Nadia Au Art director: Rene Lo Production House: Adu Production Exposure: TV, radio, outdoor, and print 5. SINGAPORE AIRLINES Project: Kris World Classic campaign Client: Singapore Airlines Brief: Build up and reinforce the Kris World brand Agency: Batey Ads Creative directors: Gary Tranter, Gary Caulfield Photography: Carlos Great Ocean TV production: Silverscreen Production Exposure: TV, cable, press, print and internet 6. YELLOW PAGES Project: The Living Pages Client: Yellow Pages Brief: Transform brand into a 21st century information provider Agency: McCann-Erickson Guangming Executive creative director: Geoff Naus Creative director: Martin Lever Copywriters: William Tsang, James Reeves Art director: Andrew Foung Exposure: Television, newspapers and outdoor

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