HOW IT BEGUN? 

Once upon a time, in the tropical country of Singapore, there lived a writer called Chrissy Lim. On a hot and muggy afternoon, in the cool environs of a store named after a fruit, Chrissy stumbled upon a magical thing called the iPad.

“Curiouser and curiouser,” she thought, and her inner child gazed in awe as pictures and pages of text swept past her with the gentlest touch of a fingertip.

“Imagine using these apps to tell stories!” Chrissy thought, her eyes bright and brimming with excitement.

The idea flew into her mind and become PaperplaneCo — a place for artist friends to come together and create stories for children through apps and books.

THE BEST IS YETI COME

One Sunday morning, lonely and coveting a friend’s LEGO Yeti that had stolen her heart, Chrissy found a consoling thought: at least she wasn’t as lonely as a yeti, growing up alone, with no one to help it find its way. She found herself thinking of her childhood — spent in the company of books and of never fitting in — and her heart became full. She went home, took to her desk, and did what she knew best — writing stories. A story about a young, sweet yeti, alone in the Arctic snows, embarking on a quest to find himself.

The LEGO yeti had belonged to Teresa Ong, then chief illustrator at PaperplaneCo. Often feeling as shy and as awkward as Chrissy had created Norman to be, the story of the bumbling yeti tugged at her heart. She brought out her pencil and inks, and putting her head together with Chrissy’s, sketched and painted in painstaking, delightful detail, the story of  The Abominable Norman.

Panel by panel, 243 frames of childlike imagination and artistry brought Norman’s journey to life. Adorable and instantly relatable, Norman found his way into libraries, online stores, and children’s book festivals, and ultimately into the hearts of the young and the young at heart.

While Norman’s story ended there, PaperplaneCo’s had just begun.

The digital economy had arrived. Companies were looking for storytellers, someone who would find a way to cut through the noise and help them speak to their customers’ hearts. It was SAP who we first worked with, and as word grew, more followed.

Just like Norman, PaperplaneCo too has been on a journey of discovery, finding meaning in the relationships we’ve built with our clients, and the customer relationships we’ve helped them build.

A grand finale capped the celebrations to round off a year of celebration – The Future of Us, an immersive and multi-sensory experience that offered Singaporeans a glimpse into the possibilities of how Singaporeans can live, work, play, care and learn in the future.

We were delighted to work with Pico Art and the momentum in Home Tomorrow. Floating apartment buildings? Solar power energy sources? Rooftop gardening? Our design, illustration and animation offered a glimpse into the lifestyle innovations, concepts and technology that will create closer-knit communities of the future. The Future of Us was a huge success, attracting 200,000 visitors in the first month of opening. Happy 50th birthday, Singapore!