Edelman strengthens APAC production with new leadership hires

Edelman has strengthened its studio and production capabilities across Asia Pacific into a connected regional network, appointing Jack Shillito (pictured right) as head of production, APAC, and Edmund Quah (pictured left) as APAC head of studio to lead the next phase of its integrated production offering.

The move builds on Edelman's ongoing investment in regional production capabilities and AI-enabled workflows, strengthening its ability to deliver integrated content across markets through a more connected network spanning Asia Pacific and its global operations.

Based in Singapore, Shillito brings more than a decade of experience across television, digital and branded content production. He began his career at Endemol in London before moving into digital storytelling, leading campaigns for brands including Coca-Cola and Diageo, as well as the UK Government. He has also advised clients such as Deliveroo and Amazon on creator-led marketing.

In his new role, Shillito will oversee Edelman's production capabilities across Asia Pacific, focusing on advancing a more integrated regional production model aligned with Edelman Studios' global network. He reports to Pat Sidoti, Edelman's global chief production officer.

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Meanwhile, Kuala Lumpur-based Quah joins as APAC head of studio, bringing extensive experience in production delivery and integrated marketing operations. Previously at Ogilvy, he developed operating models across strategy, creative, paid media and production teams to deliver more connected brand experiences.

Reporting to Shillito, Quah will focus on strengthening Edelman's studio capabilities while aligning them more closely with the agency's integrated marketing and communications offering.

Commenting on the appointments, Rakesh Thukral, CEO, Asia Pacific, Edelman, said audio-visual storytelling has become increasingly central to how clients communicate and drive business outcomes.

"Over the past few years, we have steadily built our production capabilities across key markets including India, Malaysia and Singapore. With Shillito and Quah in their roles, we are further connecting these capabilities across Asia Pacific and into our global network, strengthening our ability to deliver high-quality, integrated content at scale," said Thukral. 

Edelman has operated studio and production capabilities across Asia Pacific for approximately five years, supporting clients across design, content, video, social, events, localisation and campaign production. The latest investment formalises those capabilities into a more connected regional model, linking established local studio teams with a stronger production hub in Kuala Lumpur.

Speaking to MARKETING-INTERACTIVE, Shillito said the approach allows the agency to combine local market expertise with regional scale and global production connectivity. The investment also reflects changing client expectations where brands are increasingly looking for communications partners that can deliver greater volumes of content at speed, while maintaining quality and adapting work for local audiences.

"Clients increasingly expect communications partners to move from strategy to execution more seamlessly. Integrated communication campaigns now need to travel across earned, social, paid, executive and stakeholder channels, often across multiple APAC markets. That requires more content, faster turnaround, stronger quality control and better localisation," explained Shillito. 

Rather than focusing on producing standalone campaign assets, Shillito said the agency is investing in integrated content systems that allow work to be adapted and scaled more efficiently across markets, while bringing production expertise into campaigns much earlier in the creative process.

For clients across Southeast Asia, the new leadership structure will provide clearer access to integrated production and studio expertise. While Kuala Lumpur serves as a scalable regional production hub, local market teams will continue to provide cultural understanding, language expertise and stakeholder insights.

Shillito pointed to Edelman's "Go Mongolia" campaign for the Government of Mongolia as an example of the agency's integrated production capabilities in action. The campaign combined country brand strategy, immersive storytelling, digital experiences and film to raise global awareness of Mongolia while encouraging tourism and investment.

The goal is not just to produce more assets faster, it is to create work that earns attention, builds trust and can move across markets with cultural relevance and craft.

As production workflows become increasingly AI-enabled, Shillito said Edelman views artificial intelligence as a tool to support, rather than replace, human creativity and judgement. AI is being used to assist with tasks such as prototyping, adaptation, localisation, editing and versioning, while creative craft, cultural understanding and reputation management remain led by people.

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