Producer Karim Bartoletti on Surprisingly Universal Nature of ‘Assume That I Can’

The Cannes Lion-winning 'Assume I Can' campaign, launched earlier this year for World Down Syndrome Day, resonated not just with people with disability, but with women too, international producer Karim Bartoletti explains.

“It’s clear when you have something in your hands that is beyond what you’re saying and bigger than what you’re saying,” Karim said, speaking on a No Silly Questions seminar run by Inclusively Made’s Henry Smith and Paul Nunnari. 

The campaign was circulated throughout all types of disability groups, but women saw themselves represented by the message, “Assume That I Can, So Maybe I Will,” too, Karim said.

“The tagline, as simple as it is, is beyond that specific disability and is beyond disabilities in general. I think people who loved the campaign made it their own. Women that felt empowered, sent it to other women. My children sent it to me, it was viral.” 

Upon its release, the campaign gained the same amount of likes as it did shares. According to Karim, these shares, likes, and comments were not out of pity, nor was the creation of the campaign. 

“We don’t do pity commercials for that client,” he said. “We don’t have people cry for the wrong reasons or for a general reason. People have to laugh, cry and feel for a very specific reason when creating a campaign.”

Karim explained the complexities of working with people with disabilities. 

“In this specific case, before we shot the film and before we even cast [it], the client noted that the person with Down Syndrome might not want to say ‘fuck’. It’s not obvious that what you write down will be what you do. It’s also not necessarily true.” 

Karim noted that long shoot days could be harder for someone with Down Syndrome, and said the production put different measures in place, lower lights and more frequent breaks, for example. 

“People with Down Syndrome need their time, but that doesn’t impede on what you are doing,” he said. 

Karim, Henry, and Paul said including the people who a campaign is about is the only

way to ensure authenticity, especially when dealing with a topic that is much larger than a singular experience. 

“Even when we changed the script to one person speaking, it became clear that the main person had to be a woman,” Karim said. 

Inclusively Made’s No Silly Questions series facilitates an open floor discussion where no question is too silly to be asked. To find out about the next seminar follow Inclusively Made on Instagram and LinkedIn.