By Melodie Lee

At just 25 years of age, the copywriter at local advertising firm Religion is the woman behind the recent saucy Carls’ Jr. print advertisement that reads: Some like it long. But most love it thick.

Currently working on campaigns for Burger King, Jayine is also the one responsible for the latest controversial Super Seven Incher and Topsy Turvy burger advertisements, which had people writing in to TODAY newspaper, to protest the raunchy text.

She laughs sheepishly and covers her face before saying hastily, “I’m sorry if I traumatised anyone!”

Dressed in a quirky getup of knee-length black-and-white striped leggings and a chilli red cardigan, topped off with a head of curly shoulder-length jet-black hair, she does not look like a local. She reveals that she is Korean, but says that having lived here most of her life, she feels “totally Singaporean”.

Amid her smatterings of ‘lah’s, Jayine trills excitedly about her short stint back in 2005 as Zoe Tay’s personal assistant.

She recalls that it was tough, getting up at 6.30a.m., “giving Zoe morning calls and hauling loads of clothes and bags around”. Of course there were the perks, which included truckloads of freebies. “I think Zoe and I were one of the first in Singapore to wear Crocs before they got popular here!” she says gleefully.
Seeing as she has always been doing work behind-the-scenes, does she sometimes wish she were out there in the spotlight? Her eyes flicker up toward the ceiling, lips pursed, before she replies that she likes it this way.

Then she looks down and sighs dramatically. “But my childhood dream was to be an actress! I wanted to be the first Asian in Hollywood!” she gushes. “Then I realised I had no talent, so I decided to stick to doing behind-the-scenes work.”

Jayine feels that working for television is “too physically demanding” and uninspiring; theatre work is mostly part-time and she doesn’t like the idea of her hobby becoming her job.

Hence she found the perfect solution. With absurd demands of creative juice involved and wacky colleagues, copywriting in an advertising agency became her way to go.

“I love naming new products, especially the burgers,” she says with a grin.

So what does she see herself doing after this job?

“Ask me in 15 years. Maybe I’ll have finally broken into the forefront and set up my own advertising agency.”

She adds cheekily, “Then I’ll get to boss other people around!”