Commonwealth Games: How creative are the Commonwealth countries?

Australia

McCann Austraila's much lauded 'Dumb Ways to Die' for Metro Trains

JWT Sydney's 'I Touch Myself' campaign

"What’s the secret? Of course, if there was one I wouldn’t tell – but honestly there isn’t. The simple reality is that Australian agencies are as ambitious, hungry, talented, hard-working and hugely competitive as the rest of the world. If there is a difference in how we do it, perhaps it’s in our odd combination of humility and fighting spirit." - Simon Langley, executive creative director, JWT Sydney

Canada

Tribal Toronto 'Our food, your questions' for McDonald's

John St's 'exFEARential'

"In Canada we get to fly under the radar here more than other countries do. We’re smaller, so our work isn’t subject to 16 levels of client approvals and the inevitable rounding of the edges that happens when more and more clients have to say yes to a courageous idea.

"You don’t need to have ‘assistant creative director’ in your job title to get to work on a good brief in this country. If you’re smart, talented, optimistic (no cynics!) and are driven to be great, you can be great here. Apologies to the US, but Canada is the real land of opportunity." - Angus Tucker, executive creative director/ partner, John St

India

JWT's 'Make Every Yard Count' ad for Nike Cricket features 1,440 young cricketers

Internet Baby' for MTS by Creativeland Asia

"Great creativity is all about the expression of ideas. It has always been this way, from the architectural wonder of the Taj Mahal to the country’s film industry, which produces the world’s most-watched cinema offerings. However, what influences our ideas has changed immeasurably over recent years. We have modernised, become more edgy and become better connected to western culture. As our economy has grown, so too has the ambition of our young people. It is reflected in the music they listen to, the way they dress and their digital appetite.

"When once great creativity was rooted in Indian ideas, now great creativity is a global concept with Indian influences. Indian creativity is flourishing and increasing numbers of people are taking notice." - Sajan Raj Kurup, founder and creative chairman, Creativeland Asia

Singapore

BDO Proximity Singapore’s work promoting GDIB – Guinness Draught In a Bottle

"Singapore sits in a geographically advantageous location in the middle of Asia, the new land of opportunity and has emerged as a creative hub because of a gradual shift over the past 15 years or so of regional corporate headquarters from Hong Kong and Shanghai to Singapore.

"Work commissioned in Singapore is now destined for countries around the region and even around the world – to Europe, the United States, you name it – so the opportunity here to do work that makes a mark on the global and international stage is greater than ever." - Eugene Cheong, chief creative officer, Ogilvy & Mather Asia Pacific & Singapore

Malaysia

'Tan Hong Ming' for Petronas

'Right the wrong' for Papermate by TBWA\Malaysia

"Malaysia, Truly Asia’ is the slogan for Tourism Malaysia, and it somewhat describes the advertising scene in Malaysia. It is a potpourri of Asian creative professionals from Malaysia, Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand and Singapore, and is now winning its fair share of creative accolades in international shows.

"With the next generation of leaders like Kok Keong, CK Tan, Sathi Anand and Vijay Anand coming to the fore, you’d best be prepared to see the Malaysian flag fly higher in the near future." - Sa’ad Hussein, chief creative officer and executive director, TBWA\Kuala Lumpur

New Zealand

'The Devil's Chair' for insurance firm NZI, created by FCB Auckland

Yellow Pages Yellow Treehouse restaurant

"Why does NZ punch so far above its weight creatively? Having worked in both London and Sydney, I can say it’s certainly not because we have better ideas, but there are several unique factors that combine to improve our strike rate.

"Firstly, we are a long way from everywhere. Historically this distance was regarded as a tyranny, but today it affords us greater creative freedom. Secondly, there aren’t many of us. As we all know, doing great work is one thing, but selling it is another. By necessity both our local and multinational client structures are relatively flat, so we get to hear ‘no’ earlier. This might sound counter-intuitive, but if our ideas die, it’s a swift and deliberate act rather than them being collateral damage due to a protracted process or complex hierarchy.

"Thirdly, whether it is the distance from the rest of the world or the lack of people, there is something in the New Zealand psyche that values creativity, resilience and innovation – the ‘No 8 wire mentality’, as they call it Down Under. In adland, this means that agencies need to be adaptive and resilient, while clients have learned to respect innovation. Both believe that a more creative answer is a better answer." - Andrew Holt, managing director, Clemenger BBDO Wellington

South Africa

'The Street Store' for Haven Night Shelter, created by M&C Saatchi Abel Cape Town

"South Africa is a very liberated society – we don’t take ourselves that seriously, we laugh at ourselves and have always had a pioneering spirit, a make-do attitude in creating realities.

"Blend that with a lot of first world elements in our economy and the fact we are operating in a developing market, and fuel it with our geography, which allows for real African solutions, and you see that we have to connect the dots where there are no dots. So being maverick is in our DNA – being creative and thinking outside the box to find solutions is part of our culture.

"A lot of South African creative work plays up against the social tensions within our society – and there are many, given the diverse community of people living here. However, because we are able to generate a lot of light out of those social tensions, it makes for great work that our consumers can really feel a part of." - Yoav Tchelet, executive digital director, JWT South Africa

These interviews were originally published in the 9 July edition of The Drum magazine, available to buy in The Drum Store. You can read more about Australia and Canada's views here, Malaysia, Singapore and India's here, and New Zealand and South Africa's here.