MANILA – Chosen among creatives from all over the world, DM9 JaymeSyfu’s associate creative director Biba Cabuquit made it as one of the 12 women to join See It Be It, a unique programme and filmmaking project which will happen at the Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity.
A brand-new initiative to redress the under-representation of women in creative job roles, See It Be It aims to grow the next set of senior female creative talents, create a very visible group of female role models, and address the need brands have for more female creative talent.
Cabuquit was nominated by DM9JaymeSyfu’s CCO Merlee Jayme to Senta Slingerland of Cannes Lions when they rolled out this program. “I then had to put up a LinkedIn page and had a long, excruciating wait. After two weeks of not hearing anything, I was ready to move on, thinking I might not have made the cut. But then, when DM9 was on our way to London, where, incidentally, the Cannes Lions held offices, I got an e-mail to meet Senta!” shared Cabuquit.
The 3-day programme, which will happen from June 15 to June 17, will be producing a short documentary with the group that speaks on how a more gender-balanced creative industry ensures better work. The film will be released in September.
Asked about her strongest point that can contribute a lot in this progam, she shared: “I think the Philippines has a unique perspective when it comes to Women Leaders. Our country may be an emerging market, but it’s fairly typical to have female CEOs, MDs and Chairmoms. In contrast, some of the other women included in “See It, Be It” have never even had a female boss. I think it’s all very interesting hearing everyone’s stories and perspectives from their part of the world.”
“I’m looking forward to going to Cannes, meeting the other 11 women, attending the talks, soaking up the atmosphere, seeing the best of this year’s work, meeting other Creatives from all over the world, hearing Aaron Sorkin and Stephen Moffat talk, exploring the South of France and just really enjoying this incredible opportunity,” she added.
Cabuquit has been with DM9JaymeSyfu for 7 years, working steadily for a range of accounts. For the first few years, she was the only female creative in a team of 8 men. She currently leads an all-girls team, working for J&J’s teen brands, mixed with the occasional alcoholic or telco requirement. Biba has won awards from The One Show, Cannes Lions, The Work, New York Festival, and AWARD.
