A year ago we set The Royals a task to creatively respond to coronavirus. Exactly 12 months on, we’ve set a new Royals challenge — respond to the statement “coronavirus is now like … ‘. Here’s what we came up with. Ken Sum _________________________________________________________________ Coronavirus is now like… Nervous as…

In a big year, this year’s birthday was a big one for me. I turned 25 which, in my mind, is when you enter adulthood and level up to a fully-fledged member of society. People say you become an adult when you turn 18. You’d take that back if you…

My heartbeat is like a rhythmic thunderclap in my chest. I’m apprehensive and restless. I’m standing in a room behind the stage of a small theatre with 10 others. We’re about to perform a show that none of us know the lines to. There’s no script, no set characters, barely…

Think about the year so far… Fires. Floods. Planes grounded. Cities locked down. Jobs lost. Kids homeschooled. Super accounts drained. Skyrocketing national debt. And for many, loved ones lost. If there was a maxim that 2020 has rammed home, it is surely this: “Want to make God laugh? Tell her…

This is a story about creativity. Not a blockbuster campaign or a celebrity-fuelled spectacle. But a poignant idea that was born into the world at just the right moment. It’s a simple, inclusive idea. Something anyone can do, and it celebrates First Nations’ people and encourages learning and respect in…

Throw Away the Script: What Mike Leigh’s filmmaking can teach creatives Recently I watched Mike Leigh’s Life is Sweet. It was a recommendation that director Dylan Harrison of Hooligan Collective made when we were on a shoot for Charles Darwin University. We were filming real uni graduates — not actors…

Humans don’t deal with uncertainty well. We like to have a plan, a timeframe and a light at the end of the tunnel. When we lose our confidence, we shut down. The COVID-19 crisis has seen markets crash and business stall. Our industry’s clients have become rabbits-in-the-headlights, and many don’t…

COVID-19 has changed us. So, as The Royals settled into isolation, we set a challenge. Creatively respond to the statement ‘coronavirus is like…’. Here’s what we came up with. - Ken Sum This fetish of the apocalypse I’ve been carrying for years Has started feeling real enough to peel away my…

“Don’t buy this jacket.” And then all the reasons why you shouldn’t. That was the full page ad in the November 25, 2011 issue of The New York Times. On Black Friday no less. Patagonia proved that they stood for something more than really cool, really comfy outerwear. It’s just…