The Work That Made Me: Simon Fowler

Simon Fowler is a writer, director, and illustrator,  and 50% of the multi-award-winning (including the coveted D&AD Black Pencil) creative team that founded ABEL AU+NZ.

With his creative partner and ABEL co-founder, Nicole Jauncey, Simon has collaborated with brands big and small, new and old to bring creative ideas to life that have had a positive impact on their businesses around the world.

LBB> The ad/music video from my childhood that stays with me…

Simon> 'Do The Bart Man' instantly came to mind, and I’ve spent countless hours trying to figure out why.

Without laying down on the couch and going into it all; I think it’s a combination of 'The Simpsons' being banned in our house as kids; me idolising Bart and Lisa (I later went on to play Saxo-mo-phone as I imagine heaps of other kids did too); being a huge MJ fan at the time; as well as the theatrics around one kid, one song, and the right timing capturing the attention of a community. 

LBB> The ad/music video/game/web platform that made me want to get into the industry…

Simon> A hard one because according to my dad I used to memorise the ads. But something that got me excited about good stories being driven by an indisputable human truth was Trumpet – 'Togs, Togs, Undies'. 

LBB> The creative work (film/album/game/ad/album/book/poem etc) that I keep revisiting…

Simon> A little more in this decade – 'The Last Of Us'. Having played 1 and 2 multiple times and watched the series twice, it’s just something I keep coming back to. The complexity of the characters mixed with the immersiveness of the game takes a pretty familiar zombie construct and turns it into something unique and timeless.

Plus the gameplay UI is so minimal and intuitive it literally puts you in the perspective of the characters like nothing else. It’s proof that if you sweat the details and build your product out of love for your audience, you can’t lose. 

On another note, I tried 'Resident Evil VR' once – never again. 

LBB> My first professional project…

Simon> Nic and I kicked things off at Y&R NZ and were lucky enough to be thrown in the deep end with a brief to help Burger King concept their new Whopper, and the campaign to launch it. We worked off the insight that for Whopper-lovers, trying the new one might feel a bit like cheating. Hence the name – 'The Other Whopper'. 

LBB> The piece of work (ad/music video/ platform…) that made me so angry that I vowed to never make anything like *that*…

Simon> Look, I’m not sure a piece of work has ever made me angry – and knowing what it takes to get work out it seems unhelpful to bag something directly.

But if there was anything that came out in the last year that raised an eyebrow and a few questions, it would have to be any commercial spruiking AI in the wrong way. Toys ‘R’ Us, Google, and Coke plus many more showed us what not to do when using AI for creativity or PR purposes and how it can backfire. 

LBB> The piece of work (ad/music video/ platform…) that still makes me jealous…

Simon> Can I have two? 

'Humanium' - the new metal made from illegal firearms to help fight violence and poverty. 

And the 'Skinny Phone It In' OOH / Radio campaign.

LBB> The creative project that changed my career…

Simon> 'The Most Powerful Arm Ever Invented' for Save Our Sons with Finch. This project exposed me to the power of creativity, and how it can be used for good, beyond selling Burgers and fly spray. It gave me the chance to work with some incredibly talented humans, passionate about using their skills to make a positive difference in people’s lives. 

LBB> The work that I’m proudest of…

Simon> There are loads of pieces of work that I’m proud of for loads of different reasons. But one that stands out as a career highlight was the brief to launch Qantas Health Insurance with Australia’s national carrier.

It’s not every day you get to work with an Oscar winner (and Nick Ball). The point of difference for this health insurance being the ability to earn Qantas Points for doing everyday exercise, like walking...  

LBB> I was involved in this and it makes me cringe…

Simon> Let’s be honest, ads don’t always age well. And there are plenty of those floating around that I look back on and think ‘who approved this?’ But something I’m proud to say makes me cringe every time I watch it is our award-winning short film 'Dad To The Bone' – with its dad joke-heavy script, it’s a cringe-a-minute viewing. 

LBB> The recent project I was involved in that excited me the most…

Simon> Two for the same reason: both have leveraged cultural insights or moments to effectively cut-through, and become part of the conversation when brand awareness was low. 

The first – acknowledging first home buyers as an endangered species. An act which highlighted empathy and understanding for one audience, while becoming a shared goal or purpose for another. 

The second, leveraging a trend which celebrated the act of literally doing nothing, to become the world’s most boring 48 beer commercial.