High Five: UAE

Starting off with a ‘sweet’ idea for a serious problem around the world. Kayu Bakehouse’s 'Chocapologies' delivers a beautifully crafted albeit serious message on cyberbullying. Not sure if this is enough to stop the trolls from spewing their online hate, but it’s a different approach, nevertheless.

It’s shocking that we needed to have a pandemic to start talking more about mental health and to truly begin to understand the depths of it, especially in our part of the world. I love the craft in these three posters for Thrive Wellbeing Centre and Dubai Science Park that popped up on my Linkedin. They're arresting visuals that capture a very real feeling for so many, alongside a simple thought-provoking headline.

This is one of our pieces for the launch of the powerful new Wrangler Rubicon 392. Coming off the back of a year spent predominantly indoors, we wanted to capture that feeling of unfettered freedom and adventure that you find when you roam free, with an emotionally charged invitation to 'rewild yourself'. Coincidentally, it was also one of our first on-location films after months of remote shoots, so that was nice.

I have spent countless hours talking about Lebanon with friends, colleagues and clients. Adland in the UAE has strong ties to Lebanon, and the country’s economic plight is painful and personal for all of us. Naturally, this piece of work instantly struck a chord when it emerged just a few days ago. It's a simple and powerful idea from the country’s leading newspaper to forgo their elections edition and instead donate the paper and ink to print election ballots to help uphold the democratic process. Chapeau, AnNahar.

Ending with a heartfelt film promoting the UAE, I chose this one because it’s quite wonderful and so different from the tourism campaigns we so often see. The story invites you to see the country from the perspective of a visually-impaired visitor, and blends rich cinematic imagery with a documentary-like intimacy that just pulls you into her experience. The music is magical, Clara is authentic and real, and for those of us lucky enough to call the UAE home, well, we all know how magnificent it is in winter, and the film captures it beautifully.