Quick Answer
HSBC has launched “The Right Wave,” a global brand campaign developed by Team Helix and led by VML UK with VML Lisbon, using the relationship between big-wave surfer Matahi Drollet and jet ski driver Tahurai Henry as a metaphor for trusted partnership. Alongside the hero film, the campaign extends across OOH advertising, digital, social, streaming and inflight entertainment, positioning HSBC as a partner that helps customers navigate uncertainty and seize opportunities.
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HSBC Turns Big-Wave Surfing Into a Global Brand and OOH Campaign
HSBC has launched “The Right Wave”, a hero brand film designed to bring its role as a trusted banking partner to life through the high-pressure relationship between a surfer and a jet ski driver.
The campaign uses the partnership between Matahi Drollet and Tahurai Henry as a metaphor for trust, expertise and timing. In big-wave surfing, the surfer depends on the driver to read conditions, position them correctly and help them reach the right moment safely.
That same idea translates naturally into Outdoor Advertising, where concise messages such as “When the moment arrives” and “We’re there to give you momentum” communicate the campaign platform in a format built for fast public recognition.
Digital Out-of-Home Advertising Extends “The Right Wave” Beyond Film
While the hero film carries the emotional narrative, the campaign also extends into Digital Out-of-Home, digital, social and streaming platforms, allowing the same brand idea to appear across different audience touchpoints.
The OOH creative simplifies the surfing metaphor into a single image and a short message. That makes the campaign suitable for Digital Billboards, Outdoor Media and other high-frequency environments where viewers may have only a few seconds to engage.
Instead of trying to reproduce the entire film in public space, the outdoor work focuses on one clear emotional promise: HSBC is there when the moment arrives.
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Large-Format Billboard Advertising Gives the Trust Metaphor More Scale
A second execution expands the idea into Large-Format Billboard Advertising, showing a surfer, jet ski driver and breaking wave in a wider composition built around the message “We’re there to give you momentum.”
The larger frame gives the campaign room to communicate the relationship between the two athletes more clearly. The surfer is not shown alone; the support system is visible within the same image.
That distinction matters because the campaign is fundamentally about partnership. The OOH Media does not simply use surfing as a visual spectacle. It uses the sport to show that progress in uncertain conditions often depends on expertise, timing and another person helping create the right opportunity.
The Hero Film Gives the OOH Marketing Platform Its Emotional Core
The cinematic film was shot at Teahupoʻo in Tahiti, where Matahi Drollet and Tahurai Henry navigate powerful 25-foot waves. The location and real relationship between the two athletes give the campaign a level of authenticity that supports the wider OOH Marketing message.
Produced by Superprime Films with local Polynesian production company We Are Ora, the production depended on specialist local knowledge, careful risk assessment and precise timing to capture the right conditions.
The film was directed by Kiku Ohe, with cinematography by Tim Lorentzen and Morgan Maassen. A documentary exploring the relationship between Matahi and Tahurai, their connection with Teahupoʻo and the wave itself is also planned for later this year.
Creative OOH Turns Market Volatility Into a Visual Story
The central metaphor works because the ocean is visibly unpredictable. A surfer cannot control the wave, but with the right expertise and support, they can be positioned to act when the opportunity arrives.
That idea gives the Creative OOH a strong visual foundation. The image already communicates pressure, movement and uncertainty before the audience reads the headline.
For a financial brand, this helps avoid relying on abstract corporate imagery. The campaign replaces charts and office environments with a human relationship that expresses trust through action.
Team Helix and VML Build an Integrated OOH and Brand Campaign
“The Right Wave” was developed by Team Helix, WPP’s integrated agency team for HSBC, led by VML UK in partnership with VML Lisbon, with media handled by OMG Media.
The integrated activation includes digital, social and streaming cutdowns, inflight entertainment on flagship airlines and Outdoor Advertising executions that carry the same trust-and-opportunity message into public environments.
That consistency is important for a global brand platform. Whether audiences encounter the campaign through film, DOOH Media or another channel, the core idea remains the same: HSBC aims to help customers navigate uncertainty and act when the right moment arrives.
An OOH Case Study in Turning Trust Into Outdoor Advertising
“The Right Wave” is a useful OOH Case Study because it shows how an intangible brand attribute like trust can be translated into a physical visual story.
The campaign does not simply claim that HSBC is experienced or dependable. It shows a relationship where those qualities are necessary for success, then carries that metaphor into Billboard Advertising and Digital Out-of-Home with minimal copy.
For financial, professional-services and B2B brands, the lesson is clear: strong Outdoor Marketing can make complex positioning easier to understand by attaching it to a recognizable human experience.
What Brands Can Learn From HSBC’s OOH Advertising Campaign
- Build around one strong metaphor. The surfer and jet ski driver give the entire campaign a clear emotional structure.
- Use large-format OOH to simplify the message. The outdoor executions reduce the film to one visual idea and one short promise.
- Let the imagery do part of the storytelling. The scale and unpredictability of the wave communicate risk before any copy is read.
- Keep the campaign consistent across channels. Film, digital, social, streaming and OOH all reinforce the same idea of partnership and opportunity.
- Use Outdoor Advertising to humanize abstract brand values. Trust and expertise become easier to understand when audiences can see them represented through a real relationship.
Final Reflection: OOH Advertising Gives HSBC’s Trust Platform Public Momentum
HSBC’s “The Right Wave” shows how OOH Advertising can extend a cinematic brand platform without losing its emotional core.
By combining powerful surfing imagery, concise headlines and large-format Outdoor Media, the campaign translates trust, timing and partnership into something audiences can understand quickly in public space.
The result is a strong example of Creative DOOH and Billboard Advertising working alongside film to make a global brand idea feel both human and immediate.
Summary
“The Right Wave” uses extreme surfing to dramatize trust, timing and expertise. Shot at Teahupoʻo in Tahiti, the campaign follows Matahi Drollet and Tahurai Henry as they work together in dangerous 25-foot surf, turning that relationship into a metaphor for HSBC’s role in helping customers navigate volatility. The activation expands the film into OOH media and other channels, with large-format and digital outdoor creative that translates the campaign’s themes into concise public messages such as “When the moment arrives” and “We’re there to give you momentum.”
Sources
Campaign information and visuals were supplied for this article. No independently verified campaign performance data was supplied.
FAQs
What is HSBC’s “The Right Wave” campaign?
It is a global brand campaign using the partnership between big-wave surfer Matahi Drollet and jet ski driver Tahurai Henry as a metaphor for trust, expertise and navigating uncertainty.
What role does OOH Advertising play in the campaign?
OOH and DOOH executions translate the film’s surfing metaphor into concise public messages about seizing opportunities and gaining momentum.
Who created “The Right Wave”?
The campaign was developed by Team Helix, led by VML UK in partnership with VML Lisbon, with media handled by OMG Media.
Where was the hero film shot?
The film was shot at Teahupoʻo in Tahiti during high-risk wave conditions, with support from local production company We Are Ora.
Why does the campaign work as an OOH case study?
It turns an abstract brand promise about trust and expertise into a simple visual metaphor that can be understood quickly across large-format and digital outdoor media.
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