This year’s annual Petronas Raya Merdeka spot from Leo Burnett ends up as a short film

Updated to include 60sec TVC: When Leo Burnett Malaysia was briefed to create the Raya Merdeka TV commercial for Petronas this year, little did they realise how far the journey would take them. What started out as a continuation of the “reimagining energy” theme distilled itself into a message of “inner strength and self discovery” which led to the creation of a series of TV spots that led to a short film – the story of a Malaysian spending Raya away from home.

The main TVC titled “A Letter Home” follows the story of a young Petronas engineer named Erman based in Central Asia. His struggle begins when he is unable to return home to spend Raya with his family, but the true journey begins when his path crosses that of a local boy, Jeyhun. Erman narrates his story through a letter to his parents, telling them of his experience in a foreign country and how it leads to him discovering the true meaning of Raya.

VIEW THE SHORT FILM

VIEW THE 60SEC SPOT

“This story is something all of us can relate to,” said Leo Burnett Creative Director Iska Hashim. “We all want to be together with our family and friends, especially during the festive season. So, you can feel sorry for yourself or make the best of the situation. What best sums it up is Erman’s epiphany – [I realise] that who I am is less important than what I have to offer.”

With the idea quickly taking shape, the team explored different avenues that would cut through the festive clutter.

“During the concepting stage, the ECD challenged the team to push the idea past a traditional TV spot,” said Copywriter Justine Lee. “That’s when we asked ourselves, why don’t we explore what happens after Erman has his epiphany? How does his relationship with Jeyhun change him? How does he impact the community? “

The final outcome was a 60-second TV commercial and two 30-second trailers that led viewers to the short film – Strangers – on YouTube.

“While Petronas films from the past celebrated stories from within the country, representing the voice of Malaysians, this year’s campaign was meant to start a new chapter – telling of a broader Petronas story and the role it plays across the globe,” explains Petronas Senior General Manager of Group Corporate Affairs Dato Mohammad Medan Abdullah.

“The story of Erman and Jeyhun parallels the collaboration of Petronas and the countries it operates in. While the two start out as strangers, every step brings them closer to realising their true potential, to reimagining their energy by contributing to the world they live in, to discovering their inner strength and making a difference to those around them,” said Leo Burnett Executive Creative Director Eric Cruz.

Film Director Quek Shio Chuan of Reservoir Production was tasked to bring the films to life.  “We specifically had Quek in mind for this script after seeing his short film Guang. He was someone who not only had the vision for a storytelling production of this scale, but also the human touch to capture real emotion and the true spirit of the script,” said Cruz.

The film production took place in Uzbekistan across Tashkent, Bukhara, Nukus, and Navoiy.  “We scouted for the best, most production-friendly country we could find and ended up working with Yappi Films,” said Reservoir Production Executive Producer Ismail Kamarul. “We faced a lot of challenges such as language barriers and the intense heat but thanks to the crew’s support, in the end everything went smoothly.”

The short film begins and ends with interviews of real Petronas staff stationed away from home. “What viewers will see are real, spontaneous responses, it’s completely unscripted. It was touching to see their true emotions, how they truly miss their family, friends and homeland. It was a heartwarming revelation to hear how being away from home strengthens their love and appreciation of Malaysia,” said Quek.

Forgoing the traditional cutdowns, the 30-second spots served as trailers for the short film – one Raya-skewed, the other focusing on Merdeka.

The Raya trailer follows the protagonists on a ride home. Driving through cotton fields, Erman notices his young friend looking bored and to cheer him up, plays the iconic “Selamat Hari Raya”, a charming twist on the familiar “balik kampung” ritual.

The Merdeka trailer takes a different approach to what has been done over the years. It’s a completely fresh perspective, seeing Malaysia through the eyes of someone who has never stepped foot there – the little boy Jeyhun. Relying on stories from Erman, Jeyhun pieces together parallel images as a means of trying to understand this strange and wonderful place Erman calls home, Malaysia.

Strangers, released on 6th August 2012 has achieved 566,591 hits and 6,073 “likes” since and counting.

Credits

Leo Burnett Group Malaysia

Making-Of Cameraman: Goh Pooeik