Malaysian Kids Teach Adults the Importance of Taking Care of the Environment

The three-minute film tells the true story of 10 children hailing from a small fishing village in Teluk Intan, Malaysia. When the fishing village faced a waste management crisis due to its inaccessibility and the way its residents in managed their litter, the group of 10-year-old kids took up the responsibility and cleaned up the entire fishing village, inspiring all the villagers to be more mindful of their waste and litter.

As a preface to RHB’s new ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) aspirations, ‘A Spark for Change’ humanizes a crucial environmental issue and brings a pivotal lesson to life via a heartfelt story of a young boy and his father, who both have different views of what a small spark of action can do.

“While the subject of this film is the environment, which is in line with the bank’s new ESG initiatives, the lesson in itself is universal,” said Abdul Sani Abdul Murad, Chief Marketing Officer of RHB.

“Progress is often sparked by those who are bold enough to take the first step to bring change to the world, inspiring others with their actions to do the same. That is how we can make the world a better place, and that is what ‘Together We Progress’ is all about. Hence, ‘A Spark for Change’ is more than just an environment story; it’s an origin story of progress.”

The campaign willl run across all RHB Bank’s social and digital channels in conjunction with the Chinese New Year festive celebration, which starts on 1 February 2022.

“Many nights were spent on figuring out how to shine the spotlight on such a critical environmental problem without losing sight of what made RHB’s festive films so popular over the years – the people,” said James Voon, FCB Malaysia’s Associate Creative Director.

“We had to strike a fine balance between education and emotion, and thanks to our production partners at PRS and GT Records, the story was perfectly and beautifully told.”

Ong Shi Ping, FCB Malaysia’s Co-Owner and Chief Creative Officer, added “Everything, both the good and bad, always starts the same way – with us. We can choose to act negatively, and the consequences that follow will be ours to bear. But if we can start something good and inspire others around us to do the same, that is when we know that we actually have it in us to change the world for the better. As we are in the midst of rebuilding our communities and lives together, I think this lesson is more relevant to us now than ever.”

Credits
Client: RHB Bank
Group Chief Marketing Officer: Abdul Sani
Head, Group Brand Comms: Tunku Hazli Bin Tunku Tolha
Manager, Group Brand Comms: Anwar Amin

Agency: FCB Malaysia
Co-owner & Chief Executive Officer: Shaun Tay
Co-owner & Chief Creative Officer: Ong Shi Ping
Head of Creative: Tjer
Associate Creative Directors: James Voon, Jonathan Chan
Copywriter: Felice Puah
Associate Account Director: Karima Kamal
Account Executive: Gabrielle Khoo
Senior Producer: Amin Taib

Music, Sound Design & Composer: GT Records
Executive Producer: Ram Nabil Chia
Producer: Munirah Razali
Sound Engineers: Shah Haron

Production House: PRS Productions
Film Director: Telly Koay
Producer: Fahzwan Fah

Post House: Asia Pacific Videolab
Offline Editor: Jeff Ho
Online Artist: KC Chong
Colorist: Nash