TBWAVietnam helps The Propeller Group rebrand communism at the Singapore Biennale

ASIA-PACIFIC – HO CHI MINH CITY, VIETNAM, MAY 11, 2011 – It is a scene familiar to everyone in the advertising industry: a team sitting around a table, working on a rebranding brief. The ad agency is real, TBWA\Vietnam. The brief is the rebranding of communism. The client is an art collective based in Los Angeles and Ho Chi Minh City, The Propeller Group. Entitled "TVC Communism", the video documentary is the collective’s latest. 

 

The documentary follows TBWA\Vietnam during a brainstorming session, the first documentary of its kind to ever cover the topic in this format. The film was shot entirely on location in Ho Chi Minh City over a 3-week period. 

 

 

"The main idea for the film is all about the creative process. We wanted to capture a group of creative individuals to see how they would re-brand a delicate subject such as Communism," said Tuan Andrew Nguyen, director at the Propeller Group.

 

"We approached TBWA with the idea because they have a unique point of view and their creative philosophy is unconventional. To us, they were the right people to be featured in this film," Tuan continued.

 

"There was a great deal of fear and hesitation as you can imagine with most of the Vietnamese locals," Patrick Tom, executive creative director at TBWA\Vietnam, shared with adobo. "Living in a communist country does not grant you many freedoms. So speaking freely about a political ideology the country you’re living in abides by, made a lot of people very nervous. In the end, only two of the locals in the office participated. The rest politely asked not to be captured on film." George Nguyen, Vy Nguyen, Hai Pham, Adi Karnajaya and Fanindra Jain appear with Tom in the film.

 

Aside from the multiple-camera setup, which took 15 minutes to prepare, there was no special preparation for the agency’s team. "Once the discussions began, no one really noticed the cameras were even there," said Tom. "We approached the project like any assignment we do for our clients. The filming was completely unscripted."

 

Asked whether the agency would do work like this again, Tom said: "At TBWA, we believe in creating and making things that are innovative, disruptive and meaningful. It’s at our core. So if a project feels right, then yes."

 

"TVC Communism" debuted at the 3rd Singapore Biennale 2011, which opened in March. The Propeller Group is among the 63 artists from 30 countries invited to showcase a total of 161 works at the annual event. 

 

Inside a black room at the National Museum of Singapore, a large screen divided into 15 parts focuses on each member of the team. A smaller screen opposite shows scrolling text on the history of communism and the history of advertising.

 

The 3rd Singapore Biennale runs until May 15. Held at various venues, the works can be viewed at the National Museum of Singapore, Singapore Art Museum, SAM at 8Q, Old Kallang Airport and Marina Bay.