Seven lives are lost to home fires every day in the US – more than all natural disasters combined. In an effort to change these statistics, the American Red Cross is launching “The Great Escape,” a PSA aimed at educating families on home fire safety.
This campaign focuses on preparing families with two simple steps: Practicing a 2-minute fire drill, and Testing smoke alarms monthly.
To bring this message to life, the work features a surreal universe where toys have come alive and are practicing a timely evacuation from their dollhouse—a scene which we later realize is a figment of one child’s imagination.
Created in partnership with our friends at BBDO NY and directed by Biscuit Filmworks’ Noam Murro, the memorable PSA uses surprise and imagination to capture viewers’ attention and illustrate the importance of communicating fire safety among families with a lighthearted tone.
This is a creative departure for the non-profit which typically invokes a more serious or deep tone.
“When it comes to PSA films, people can usually see them coming from a mile away. And in today’s digital environment, they’ll just scroll right past them. That’s why we decided to take a more unexpected approach. We wanted to capture the viewer’s imagination with these charming and mysterious characters before they even realized that they were watching a message about fire safety,” Roberto Danino, SVP Creative Director, BBDO NY, told Reel 360.
Watch the whimsical Red Cross effort below:
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When it came to the production, we asked Anne Lac, SVP Creative Director, BBDO NY, why they chose this particular house and what excited the team about the production. She shared, “In terms of production, we were thrilled with how all of the pieces came together, in the limited time and budget that we had. The house that we shot in had all these unique spaces, that were whimsical and alluring. And somehow all these characters were available for use, becoming this charming motley crew who manage to get out of their house in under two minutes.”
The work will run online, with social and digital executions including GIFs, and TikToks including a duet race people can participate in to see if they can get out of their house faster than the character.
Checkout the TikTok Challenge here.
CREDITS:
CLIENT: American Red Cross
- Chief Marketing & Communications Officer: Rosemary Mcgillan
- VP, Marketing Strategy & Creative Services: Selma Bouhl
- Senior Director, Social Engagement: Megan Weiler
- Director, Brand Marketing & Advertising: Donna Messersmith
- Director, Brand Marketing: Chris Andrews
AGENCY: BBDO New York
- Global Chief Creative Officer: David Lubars
- SVP, Creative Director: Roberto Danino
- SVP, Creative Director: Anne Lac
- SVP, Creative Director: Gary Du Toit
- SVP, Creative Director: Lance Vining
- Copywriter (social): Ryan Sheehy
- Copywriter (social): Emma Wren
- Art Director (social): Tamara Yakov
- SVP, Group Executive Producer: Alex Gianni
- Associate Producer: Jason Guzman
- Music Producer: Julia Millison
- Business Affairs Manager: Kathleen Bannon
- Account Manager: Sam Henderson
- Senior Strategic Planner: Alexandra Britt
PRODUCTION COMPANY: Biscuit Filmworks
- Director: Noam Murro
- Partner/Managing Director: Shawn Lacy
- Executive Producer: Andrew Travelstead
- Producer: Emily Skinner
- Head of Production: Sean Moody
- Director of Photography: Eric Schmidt
- Production Designer: Brock Houghton
- Production Supervisor: Jennifer Berry
EDIT: Rock Paper Scissors East
- Managing Director: Eve Kornblum
- Producer: Lisa Barnable
- Editor: Paul Hardcastle
- Assistant Editor: Tom Mika
- Flame Producer: Barbara Kontarovich
- Flame Artist: Edward Reina
COLOR: Primary
- Colorist: Daniel DeVue
- Executive Producer: Thatcher Peterson
- Producer: Jenny Bright
MIX: Heard City
- Mixer: Tom Morris
- Producer: Andi Lewis
- Executive Producer: Sasha Awn, Jackie James
- Managing Director: Gloria Pitagorsky
MUSIC: Human
- Composer: John Christopher Barnes
- Creative Lead: Morgan Visconti
- Executive Producer: James Dean Wells
