Paralympians Battle Gravity and Closed Minds in Topsy-Turvy Channel 4 Spot

Channel 4 has unveiled its Paris 2024 Paralympic Games campaign film which challenges people to view Paralympians as elite, world-class athletes, not as competitors 'overcoming' their disabilities.

The campaign, Considering What?, created by Channel 4’s multi-award-winning in-house agency, 4creative, asks the viewing public to reconsider their preconceptions of Paralympic greatness. 

The film captures the reactions of people as they watch Paralympic sport which, although well intentioned, are misguided and don’t appreciate Paralympians for what they are – world class athletes. 

Its first public broadcast on Channel 4 will be at 9pm tomorrow (12th July) just before the start of Celebrity Gogglebox. It will also be simultaneously aired at 9pm across all of the broadcaster’s other channels. 

The campaign comes after research, commissioned by Channel 4, showed that 59% of people said they watch the Paralympic Games to 'see athletes overcoming their disabilities' whereas just 37% say they watch the Paralympics for “exciting sporting competition”. 

Rather than showing the athletes 'overcoming their disabilities', the film depicts Paralympians taking on and overcoming forces such as gravity, friction and time - the impassionate elements and unchangeable forces of our world – that make no exception for any athlete, regardless of someone’s disability. 

The campaign is the first since Channel 4 won the UK broadcast rights to the Paralympics which will not feature the term ‘Superhumans’. 

The film is supported by a nationwide OOH campaign, where well-meaning but patronising phrases are corrected by the physicality of the Paralympic sports themselves. 

Channel 4’s chief marketing officer Katie Jackson said, “Since 2012, Channel 4 has played a key role in raising the profile of the Paralympic Games and challenging attitudes around disability. The Paralympics is one of the greatest sporting events in the world, drawing many millions of viewers. And that’s just it. This is sport, where athletic prowess takes centre stage and excellence wins above all else. 

“As we show Paralympians battling against the very real forces of our world, forces that don’t distinguish between any of us, we wanted to highlight the pure power and energy of world-class athleticism. Because at the end of the day, sport doesn’t care about disability. Paris, we’re coming for you.” 

Lynsey Atkin, executive creative director of 4creative said, “Gravity, friction, time. The unchangeable forces of our world dictate what it means to be the best on the pitch, in the pool, on the court, on the track. They offer no head starts, no free passes, no patronising pat on the head and another go around. Excellence is excellent, no caveats. How strange that as audiences we watch one of the world’s most elite sporting events with our heads tilted and our amazement seemingly tempered. 

“As we moved on from Superhumans, we wanted to turn the lens on the audience, done with a film stuffed full of Channel 4 irreverence and spirit. We owe a huge debt to Paralympians and our partners throughout the disabled community who have worked with us to bring this project to life. My personal thanks to them for backing a sports film that features a fat man with a pint and a lad with a mullet doing donuts in Brent Cross. Bring it on, Paris!”

The film brings the elements to life, personifying Gravity as an odious, shirtless man clutching a pint of beer, taunting and cackling at Paralympic wheelchair rugby star Aaron Phipps in his living room. Items around the living room begin to ‘fall’ to the ceiling as Gravity toys with the Paralympian before making Phipps ‘fall’ to the ceiling where his face smacks into the floor and the scene changes to show him in the middle of a wheelchair rugby match.

The film then introduces Friction, personified as an abrasive boy-racer in a bright yellow sports car whooping as he burns rubber performing donuts, tyres squealing and smoking. The scene moves to multi-gold Paralympic medallist Sarah Storey racing on her bike, but her wheels go from underneath her at a sharp corner leaving her helpless as her momentum drags her body across rough gravel, shredding her lycra and skin, while Friction watches on from his brash, gaudy car.

The scene switches to Paralympic sprinter Emmanuel Oyinbo-Coker as he starts a race but he finds himself helplessly drifting towards the back of the runners despite his efforts, while Lady Time looks on from the crowd, stopwatch in hand, with second hands relentlessly spinning away.

The film then shows a montage of sports including wheelchair rugby, weightlifting, judo, and paracanoeing before the image breaks to a living room where a family is watching wheelchair tennis as Alfie Hewett pulls off an amazing shot and the woman on the sofa says to her family: “He’s incredible for someone like that.” 

This is immediately followed by three men sat in a stadium and one says to his friends: “They’re so brave.”

Finally, we cut to two friends sitting at a bus stop, evidently watching the Paralympics on a mobile. One says: “She’s doing so well, considering.” And her friend, utterly perplexed, looks at her and asks: “Considering what?”

The film then shows Phipps, Storey and Oyinbo-Coker coming to terms with Gravity, Friction and Time. Phipps dusts himself down from yet another brutal fall in wheelchair rugby and spins around and re-enters the fray, Storey is head down on her bike and powers into the distance while Oyinbo-Coker storms to the front of his race, wins and then falls into the arms of his (genuine) family and friends in the crowd, celebrating his victory.

The voiceover, performed by actor, writer, producer and presenter Nabil Shaban, then states: “They would never say “He’s amazing for someone in a wheelchair.”” 

Just before the film shows the athletes conquering their respective elements, a series of messages flash up on screen in quick succession: 

• Sport Doesn’t Care About Disability
• Gravity Doesn’t Care About Disability
• Friction Doesn’t Care About Disability
• Time Doesn’t Care About Disability
• Wind Doesn’t Care About Disability
• Heat Doesn’t Care About Disability
• Force Doesn’t Care About Disability
• Sport Doesn’t Care About Disability

The full film is two minute 20 seconds but there will cut down version of 60, 40 and 20 seconds, as well as some six second version for social media. 

The film includes ParalympicsGB athletes Aaron Phipps, Dame Sarah Storey, Emmanuel Oyinbo-Coker, Joseph Lane, Emma Wiggs, Olivia Broome and Alfie Hewett. 

It’s supported by an OOH campaign, a series of striking posters (see attached) featuring Paralympic athletes Justine Moore, Gemma Collis (fencing); Mark Swan (powerlifting); Harri Jenkins, Fay West and Nick Cummins (wheelchair rugby); and Kare Adenegan (wheelchair racing). The OOH campaign goes live on 12th August across the UK.

In addition to the OOH campaign Channel 4 has also commissioned a striking mural created by artist Florence Burns, who is herself disabled. Situated at Village Underground in Shoreditch, London, the mural cleverly echoes the sentiment of the poster campaign and shows a Paralympic athlete striking through the patronising section of a statement. The mural, created with experiential agency Fever, will be remain in place until 5th August.