Creative Minds: The clever brain behind the giant cigarette that tried to snuff out tobacco sales

Name: Rebecca Nadilo

Origin: Perth, Australia

Places lived/worked: Perth, Melbourne, New York, Singapore

Pronouns: She/her

CV:

Iris, managing director, 2023 - now
Meta, APAC CSO, 2022
Wunderman Thompson, CSO, 2019 - 2022
BBDO Singapore, CSO, 2015 - 2019
BBDO New York, head of comms planning, 2012 - 2015
Isobar Melbourne, digital strategy director, 2011 - 2012

1. How did you end up being a creative?

I always wanted to be a psychologist, but a career advisor recommended marketing instead because "I liked people", so I started a Commerce degree. A friend's dad owned an advertising agency and offered me an internship at his birthday party, and that was it. I started in account service, but someone soon suggested I consider planning instead. Every now and then, I wonder what couldn't happen if I went into psychology instead, but then I think, how lucky am I to get paid to make ideas?

2. What's your favourite piece of work in your portfolio?

In New York, I pitched for and won the rebrand of CVS Pharmacy to CVS Health. It was at a time when they were removing all tobacco products from their stores (yes, in the US, pharmacies can also sell cigarettes), which was costing them billions a year in sales, but it was the right thing to do in line with becoming a healthcare company.

We pitched the brand platform 'Health is Everything', which they loved and didn't change a thing about, and on the day they got rid of the tobacco products, we extinguished giant 50-feet cigarettes that said "Cigarettes Out. Health In". We replaced cigarette packs on shelves with birthday candles in them, and back when 24/7 reactive social content was a thing, we had a newsroom replying to content. Michelle Obama even posted about it. What I loved most was that 'Health is Everything' became the litmus test for whether they did or did not choose to do so.

3. What's your favourite piece of work created by someone else?

Gosh, so much. I'm eternally jealous of anything from New Zealand—from the original DB Export ad 'The Great Wine Depression' from 2012 to the 'Friendvertising' work from Skinny's. I feel that as the world moved towards purpose and grandeur, New Zealand retained a sense of humour and continues to do work that doesn't take itself too seriously.

4. What or who are your key creative influences?

They're usually comedians because they're insanely good human anthropologists. They break insights and observations down to their simplest form and deliver them in a way that makes you say, "That's so true!" Ricky Gervais, Alec Baldwin, Tiny Fey, JLD, Jerry Seinfeld—anyone from SNL, basically.

5. What kind of student were you?

I am terrible at anything left-brain—math or science—but very good at drama, English Literature, and history. I have a terrible concentration span, lose focus quickly, and don't do great with details, so anything that allowed me to daydream or write I naturally gravitated towards. (However, I was very lazy and procrastinated assignments and studied until the very last minute, where I thrived under pressure, and that hasn't changed a bit.)

6. What's the craziest thing you've ever done?

I quit my job, left a whole life behind in Melbourne, and moved to New York without a home or job. But, in retrospect, I'd do it all the same again, and I will strongly encourage my son to do the same when he's in his twenties.

7. Who do you most admire?

Anyone who's at the top of their game yet still renowned for being kind and empathetic and having time for everyone and anyone.

8. Who’s on your dream dinner guest list (alive or dead)?

I would invite three of my favourite women and comedians—Kristen Wiig, Tina Fey and Julia Louis Dreyfus. They are the wittiest, smartest, most self-deprecating comedians who have also created some of my favourite characters throughout history. We'd drink much wine and spend most of the night laughing on the floor.

9. Who is or was the most important person in your life (not including parents, spouse/partner, or children)?

I was bullied pretty badly in high school (as most girls are, unfortunately). However, my English teacher, Mrs Merlino, who was an incredibly observant, older, cuddly, kind woman, would take me once a week for a hot chocolate and cake to talk about what was happening. She reminded me that people are nasty to others, usually when they're missing something in their own life, and also showed me how much impact one person can have on a young person. 25 years later, we still email each other and even had a cup of tea together a few years back when I was in Perth.

10. Do you work best under pressure, or when things are calm?

I get bored easily and have a very short attention span, so I thrive when things are slightly chaotic, busy, and there's time pressure. My CFO once told me, "If you want something done, give it to a busy person," I am the epitome of that.

11. What really motivates you?

Making an impact. I like feeling like I have achieved something at the end of the day. Whether that's impacting my health, my son, my family, my clients or someone in the agency—I don't like being idle or feeling unproductive. As you can imagine, I'm not very good at sitting still for too long!