Story and Purpose Merge in This Powerful Safehaven Campaign
The feeling of being left behind and isolated is an experience many of us do our best to avoid. Yet, for children with medically complex conditions, it’s often the reality of their everyday lives. Toronto-based not-for-profit organisation, Safehaven, is fighting to change this by altering perceptions and shining a light on remarkable children existing in a fast-paced world that often overlooks them.
Working with agency of record, The Local Collective, the campaign builds on ‘One in 100’, an illustrated seek and find storybook, encouraging people to find the medically complex child within recognisable Toronto landmarks. Bringing this idea to the screen, the spot aims to further educate Torontonians about the lived experiences of children with medical complexities, inspiring people to turn around and engage with compassion and understanding, ensuring that no one is left behind.
Scored to Maya Angelou’s emotive poem ‘Alone’, the campaign, directed by Chris Brown through ANIMALS, visualises the ‘One in 100’ children, transforming the statistic into a powerful visual statement that’s far harder to ignore.
To find out more about the thinking behind the campaign, LBB’s Abi Lightfoot caught up with Matt Litzinger, founder and chief creative officer, The Local Collective and director Chris Brown.
LBB> You were named agency of record for Safehaven back in July 2023, how has your relationship with the organisation evolved and led to this campaign?
Matt> I’m happy to say that our relationship has continued to strengthen since the beginning of this partnership. Speaking personally, working with this organisation has left a tremendous impact on my life. Seeing first-hand the work these people do and the passion with which they are compassionate is truly amazing! All of this has made our team strive for the best work possible… and luckily, I feel like we are getting there!
LBB> What was the initial brief from Safehaven, and how did you initially respond?
Matt> Safehaven is basically unknown. Their initial brief was to make them known, and through that develop brand ambassadors that look to support Safehaven through donation efforts first. We believe we have started that journey amongst Canadians, but there is so much more to do.
LBB> How did you work with Safehaven to ensure that the subject was tackled sensitively, whilst still making an impact?
Matt> We always work closely with our client partners. It’s our belief that the best work comes from involvement throughout the process. So, we don’t create in a silo, the client partners are a part of the process, especially when trying to convey something so specifically unique and beautiful. It’s easier in some respects to tell an impactful story when you are dealing with impactful subject matter.
LBB> What was the inspiration behind using Dr. Maya Angelou’s Poem 'Alone'?
Matt> In the process of developing the score and sound design for the idea, we were constantly playing with finding the perfect 'parallel' for the viewer. Often work can default to a V.O. to help build the narrative and do the heavy lifting explaining things. This poem allowed us to understand the challenges faced by the patients and families of Safehaven… while staying beautifully powerful. Also, our Sound Design partners are the literal best!!!
LBB> How does the campaign build on the Seek and Find book that you launched earlier in 2024?
Matt> Our overall campaign is designed to get people to take notice of the 1 in 100 children that are medically complex in Canada. To change what we notice. Both our spot and the book hit on the same theme: Being noticed. And through noticing, changing our perspectives to lead to support. Both executions use the media they are in, in different ways, but achieve the same result. The same can be said for our OOH campaign as well.
LBB> Why was this project something that you were keen to get involved in? What opportunities did you envision?
Chris> I was immediately drawn to the simplicity of the core idea - 1 in 100 kids is medically complex. The challenge was to visualise that statistic in a way that would pull people in emotionally - so that it was no longer just an abstract number. A lot of this was about peeling back the layers of the story slowly, so that people would find themselves leaning in to see what was happening.
LBB> Tell me about the shoot, what was it like working with such a large cast of young people?
Chris> Yes - hats off to the production team, who handled our cast of 100 non-actor kids, on a busy downtown street, in a heat wave, with a looming thunderstorm. Honestly, the magic was in letting kids be kids - there were many moments where we got reactions and performances that were completely pure and natural, so it was about creating space for that. The challenge was when we needed 100 kids to do the same thing, like to not look into the lens, for example.
LBB> The film is inspired by the walls and halls of Safehaven - how did you reflect this in the campaign?
Chris> This happened off-screen. For me, it was critical to meet our lead child and his family in advance. Safehaven kindly facilitated this and it was a chance to better understand their story, their life and the role Safehaven plays in it. It was an incredibly powerful and humbling experience that helped me frame the tone of this film.
LBB> Finally, is there a moment you’re particularly proud of?
Chris> The ‘turn-around moment’ - when our young girl steps away from the pack, and turns Ahmed’s wheelchair around, and then everyone walks behind him. This - of course - is the emotional turning point of the spot, but it had that same emotional impact on the day. When we rolled on that moment, it really felt like the noise of the city around us fell away, and everything became about these kids.
