5 Minutes with… Leon Le
Leon Lee was originally a copywriter, but after years of working in the industry and dabbling in all parts of ad-land, he worked his way to creative director at Cheil Worldwide.
Leon has developed a ‘can do spirit’ during his time at Cheil Worldwide and is excited to see what the future holds. Believing that the rise of Asian culture entering the mainstream western world, has reminded the local market to take pride in what they have to offer.
LBB’s Casey Martin sat down with Leon and discussed the unique qualities required for a copywriter, the dawn of the digital age, and why it’s important to think locally.
LBB> Leon, what does creativity mean to you?
Leon> It’s all about connecting the dots from different perspectives and backgrounds. For example, I am a big fan of manga, video games, football, and travelling. In certain projects, ideas actually came from how those perspectives are connected under a brief.
LBB> You started your career as a copywriter - how does that inform your work in a wider creative director role?
Leon> One unique quality of being a copywriter is: you have to know and learn everything, vertical and horizontal. For example: from cooking to playing golf, from being a fashionista to a biker, you learn to be everything at once. This helps me a lot, especially when the most challenging task of being a copy-based CD is having the ability to fulfil art directing.
LBB> You have worked for some of the world’s largest and highly regarded networks during your career. What have been the highlights and challenges, and how do you navigate them?
Leon> When I was at JWT, it’s the dawn of the digital era and we were a bit slow to evolve. Nobody really knew what digital was back then. You just need courage to change since everything worked. However, it was still classical time at Cannes Lions and I did enjoy it.
That time in Dentsu was a little like how it is in Cheil now. We had to go beyond the primary client, Honda, to expand the client pool. Technology flourished back then. All ideas were about technology. Coming to Publicis, data and IMC were big, and it was no longer fancy technology but ideas of applying techs so that they help to deliver. I went through all of this thanks to keeping my curiosity.
LBB> Creativity can be hard to pin down. Where do you find inspiration to find the ideas that will answer client problems?
Leon> As I mentioned, as a copywriter, you tend to read and watch everything. It’s the source of dots waiting for you to connect it.
If I don’t know where to start, I would go to Deck of Brilliance. And now, I use ChatGPT as a brainstorm partner. Its ideas are not good, but at least we can have something to begin with.
LBB> Asian culture has recently seen a significant rise in visibility across the western mainstream media. At what point does this impact the work you create locally?
Leon> One of the things that surprised me is that Vietnamese or Asian people haven't taken enough pride in our culture. For unknown reasons, we were seeking validation from external sources. The rise of Asian culture actually helps us to sell local ideas easier. In terms of ideating, we begin to think how to help the local markets with cultural insights rather than universal truth.
LBB> You have been a pretty prolific creative judge over the last few years! What have you taken from that for your own work- and what advice would you give potential entrants?
Leon> Think local, act local, creativity is actually in practicality. That’s what I learnt, and also the advice I would give.
LBB> What is one project that has stuck with you? What did you learn from it, and why is it something you come back to often?
Leon> I think recently, it is The OREOcodes. The beauty of simplicity and creative in practicality impressed me so much. It always reminds me that good ideas don’t have to be overly fancy. It’s more about how thoughtful you can be and how much simplicity you can distil from your thoughts.
LBB> What have you been most proud of recently, and why?
Leon> Building the team and working environment in Cheil. We are not the hottest creative shop in town, and we also didn’t have an initiative mindset before. But now, we have a team full of hunger. We are aiming to win more business as well as awards.
