Every child has a smile, but for those born with a cleft lip, they think their smiles are ugly. So they never smile, and as a result, they struggle to make friends. BBDO Bangkok has partnered with Operation Smile, a global foundation that raises money to perform cleft surgery on children in need, to demonstrate the power and beauty of a smile, raising awareness and much-needed donations. The campaign launched in May 2015 with the world’s first painted-cleft play as professional make-up artists painted fun and playful characters around children’s lips to highlight their smiles. The play was filmed and used as the main awareness driver to raise funds for the charity. Print and billboard featuring key images further supported the fundraising efforts around Bangkok. The Painted Smile captured the attention of both the Thai general public and celebrities who posted photos of themselves hiding their smiles behind cute dolls on Instagram, using the tag #thepaintedsmile. The campaign earned US $1.6 million in free PR. Most importantly, it raised enough money for more than 1,000 children in Thailand to receive cleft surgery this year.