Profit or Prophet? Rafael Damy Directs Launch Campaign for First Ever Not-For-Profit Ad Agency

Award-winning Brazilian director Rafael Damy has helmed his first UK campaign with a compelling 30-second film for London agency Brothers & Sisters. The agency was quick to spot Damy’s inspiring talent and snap him up for the ad - he’s only been represented by BIRTH UK since January.

The Brothers & Sisters campaign Prophet celebrates its new status as a social enterprise with a captivating riff on the word ‘profit’. Filmed in one continuous shot, a young woman walks in woodland and contemplates the notion that profit has many, often contradictory, meanings.

Looking directly to camera, she recounts a tongue-twisting riddle: “‘Is your kind of profit, the kinder kind of profit?’ preached the wise old prophet.” The viewer is absorbed in this moment of deep reflection as the enigma unfolds. Damy says: “As it’s a monologue to camera, my mission was to draw out a convincing and natural performance from the actor, along with presenting subtle details to make it special.”

As a social enterprise, Brothers & Sisters will trade commercially but will give all profits to charitable causes. BIRTH UK donated its time for free to the project, with Rafa explaining: “The film has a strong text and an important underlying message: look at the world differently and question if profit is being distributed to those who need it most.”

“The  words needed to be spoken in an intimate way, like talking to a friend, which made the shoot even more interesting to me. I love films with conviction where the message expresses ideals and values that strive for a better society.”

Andy Fowler, founder of Brothers & Sisters, jumped at the opportunity to offer Damy his first UK directing project. “I chose Rafa because it’s not very often you come across a director you’ve never heard of whose work stops you in your tracks.

“Rafa’s domestic abuse film 2breakthesilence is one of the most creative, more powerful, freshest things I’ve seen for a long time. It points towards a serious directing talent.