Hop to it: 10 Lunar New Year campaigns to celebrate the Year of the Rabbit

It's another festive season like no other, with mainland China in the grips of its biggest Covid wave since the pandemic began. While experts have weighed-in on how brands can be more sensitive to this environment, many brands chose to stick to their original CNY campaign plans to carry through a positive message.

In a year where everyone is looking to put the worst of the pandemic behind them, here are 10 lunar new year brand campaigns from across Asia that made us reflect, laugh and hope for a better future.

Happy lunar new year everyone!

Real magic lunar new year
Brand: Coca-Cola
Agency: Ogilvy Shanghai

This short animated film celebrates how celebrations at lunar new year may change but it's still a magical time for generations to come together. In it, the festive table is big enough to accommodate every generation’s preferences and desires, with the rabbit family’s grandson reserving the most important place on his modern New Year dinner table for his grandmother’s traditional dumplings, celebrated with a toast together.  

Through the five passes
Brand: Apple
Agency: TBWA\Media Arts Lab Shanghai

An inspiring 18-minute-long film about the core Chinese virtue of resilience and one man’s perseverance in keeping the art of Chinese Opera alive. See more.

Don't worry, be hoppy!
Brand: Singtel

The fourth instalment of Singtel’s CNY series brings back rival families, the Angs and the Huangs, as they compete over the size of their televisions ahead of a much-anticipated fictional new K-drama streaming series. However, panic sets in when the wireless network in both household goes down. See more.

Translating joy
Brand: BMW
Agency: TBWA\Juice Beijing & TBWA\BOLT Shanghai

From the brand and agency group that brought us Campaign's top CNY (and very quirky) pick last year, comes a hilarious campaign about how AI translation error can result in waves of joy. Highly relevant to today's preoccupation with AI. The film is in Mandarin.

A Clean Start
Brand: RHB Bank
Agency: FCB Shout

This CNY film tells the true story of Lex Low, a hairstylist who dedicates his life to giving free haircuts to the homeless while helping marginalised communities in Malaysia such as ex-convicts and ex-addicts. 

A bolder tomorrow
Brand: Tiger Beer
Agency: Le Pub APAC (Publicis Groupe)

Tiger flipped its script this year, shifting its festive message from achieving big things to celebrating small wins, based on research showing how much pressure young Southeast Asians feel to prove themselves, especially this time of year. See full story.

Celebrate more with less
Brand: Polestar
Agency: Media Monks Shanghai

This CNY campaign for EV brand Polestar we created a CNY plays on the sheer volume of waste from Chinese New Year decorations. Promoting zero-waste, it created the world's first red envelope that literally disappears after use, inspiring celebrating by doing ‘more’ with ‘less’, without sacrificing festive spirit.

Say Huat
Brand: Trust Bank
Agency: Iris Singapore

A comedic series of films pointing out huat (what) Trust Bank can do to help Singaporeans prosper and grow in the coming year. See the full series. 

A letter from Andy Lau
Brand: TikTok
Agency: Fred & Farid Shanghai

This campaign brings a fresh and unique approach to the traditional practice of giving hongbao. Instead of focusing on the amount of money or the mechanism of receiving red envelopes, the campaign emphasizes the simple and heartfelt message of good wishes conveyed through a traditional Chinese letter written by Andy Lau himself.

A time of togetherness
Brand: Netflix
Agency: Mash

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by Netflix Malaysia (@netflixmy)

Netflix, in collaboration with Mash and renowned Malaysian paper-cutting artist Eten Teo, have created a piece of cultural artwork to celebrate Lunar New Year for Netflix viewers across Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam, Hong Kong and Taiwan. To create something that spoke of lunar new year to the diverse Asian market in a unique and authentic way, the above shows behind the scenes footage of Teo’s papercut piece. Their collaboration marks the first time a physical artwork that is digitised will be featured on a local moment on Netflix.