Filipino agency Gigil expands to the US and Canada

Gigil, the Philippines-based creative agency, is bringing its unique brand of humorous and outrageous creative to North America by opening offices in the U.S. and Canada. The 5-year-old shop—named International Small Agency of the Year from Ad Age in 2021 in the wake of its work for the likes of RC Cola, 7-Eleven and Netflix—hopes to attract the attention of both Filipino-American brands and clients by establishing itself in New York, Toronto and Los Angeles. Its Toronto office will also house a specialist metaverse division, Metama. “Metama sounds a lot like the Filipino expression ‘may tama,’ which means wacky or kooky, which we'd love the office to be,” said Gigil managing partner Jake Yrastorza. Ad Age Best Places to Work 2023 50 companies doing a standout job See the full list here The agency's New York and L.A. offices are being overseen by U.S. Partners Jessy Daing and JV Valino, working with art director Jesse Castro. The partners did not disclose clients for New York or Los Angeles but said the agency is in various discussions and has already worked on one New York-based project that remains confidential. The Gigil Toronto office is being led by Rain Pengson, a Filipino advertising creative who relocated to Canada five years ago. That office will house the metaverse division, which already has ongoing projects. This includes work with telco Smart for the FIBA Basketball World Cup, and collaborations with the likes of Filipino doodle/illustration group WeeWillDoodle, comedy podcasters Kool Pals and NFT artist Punk Zappa for various NFT-related projects. In L.A., the agency is keen to tap into the large Filipino-American community, said Gigil founding partner Badong Abesamis. However, it does not want to confine itself only to brands with Filipino heritage. “Of course, Filipinos are everywhere, so we felt it might be something that we could pull off,” he said. “But we also feel we have something of value to offer in terms of ideas and creativity, that has the stamp of Filipinos all over it.” Gigil was founded in 2017 and made its name with its outrageous ads for RC Cola, an underdog soda brand that was previously known primarily for its value. It attracted the spotlight when the agency debuted a wacky campaign targeted at Gen Z, in which a teenager’s unusual “condition” consisted of four drinking glasses growing out of his back. The agency's work has garnered it several international awards, including Cannes Lions, where it won a Bronze Lion in Film for RC Cola in 2021 and another for its ad for party supplies brand Cheers in 2022. “We really hope to replicate the success we’ve had here in the American market,” said Abesamis. “We are the first Filipino agency to venture out of the Philippines and establish ourselves in other markets. That alone really excites us and we’re really optimistic about the opportunities.”

Filipino agency Gigil expands to the US and Canada

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