Victoria Police brings officer back to deliver a critical message about suicide in new awareness campaign via McCann Melbourne
‘Beyond The Call’, a new Victoria Police campaign, created by McCann Melbourne, has brought a past police officer back to deliver a critical message to officers about mental health and suicide warning signs. The campaign is part of a long term partnership and behaviour change program around mental health and suicide awareness.
Late Senior Constable Laurie Fox, husband and father of two took his own life on New Year’s Eve 2012, aged 32.
With the support of his former wife, Belinda Bozykowski and the Victoria Police Mental Health Program office, McCann Melbourne and production group Exit used deepfake technology to create a harrowingly real message from Senior Constable Fox, urging officers in Victoria to seek help and support without fear of consequence.
McCann Melbourne and Exit undertook a complex process involving extensive casting for the live action shoot and using original photos, videos and archival source material from Senior Constable Fox’s life.
Says Simon McCrudden, chief strategy officer, McCann Melbourne: “What unites police officers is a desire to do meaningful work and go beyond the call to make a difference to the people around them.
“We worked very closely with Senior Constable Fox’s wife, Belinda, Victoria Police and Secretary of the Police Association of Victoria, Wayne Gatt to give an officer who tragically left us too early the opportunity to continue making a difference.”
McCann Melbourne creative director, Andrew Woodhead said the nature of the issue required a new and innovative approach to affect behaviour change: “We knew that if this project was to have any significant impact we would need to convey our message in a way the audience could not possibly ignore.”
Since its launch through Victoria Police’s Bluespace Wellbeing website and Equipt (a free health, wellbeing and sleep app), the awareness campaign has received national news coverage in press and on television. The app has been developed to help Victoria Police employees to identify the signs of mental health struggles and suicidal thoughts in themselves and their colleagues and seek assistance anonymously.
In loving memory of Senior Constable Laurie Fox 31.07.1980 – 31.12.2012.
Readers seeking support can contact:
Lifeline: 13 11 14 lifeline.org.au
Suicide Call Back Service: 1300 659 467 suicidecallbackservice.org.au
Beyond Blue: 1300 224 636 beyondblue.org.au/forums
MensLine Australia: 1300 789 978 mensline.org.au
26 Comments
Saw this on the news a few weeks ago and was brought to tears. Heavy, brave, and so so important.
Good work for a good cause. In advertising, we often feel like our work is important but this could be literally life saving. Good stuff.
Together with Donation Coin and Play NZ, these are the top 3 projects of the year in the region. Well done McCann Melbourne. Well done, australia.
Hit me in the feels, well done
I don’t think that this was inspired by or referenced at all, but very similar to this project where the school shooting victim was brought back to life using deepfake.
https://adage.com/article/advertising/parkland-victim-joaquin-oliver-comes-back-life-heartbreaking-plea-voters/2285166
Powerful stuff. Well done all.
Seriously important issue. But nothing about the first 90 seconds of this video (which is generous in our instantaneous world) kept me holding on to see what this was about. Sorry.
Wow. Powerful message for an audience I reckon is very hard to get through to.
A kick right in the feels.
As someone who’s having recurring suicidal thoughts and ideations, this spoke to me. Brought me to tears. Thanks.
If you need someone to talk to drop me a line — matthew.moran@tbwa.com
Great work McCann Melbourne!
@Anon
If you need to reach out to anyone, I’m here, day or night.
My number is 0413863944 and my phone is always on.
Or please contact Lifeline on 131114
Awesome, caring and brave.
It’s rare you get to work on something so important. Kudos McCann for taking on a tough subject with so much care and grace. Here’s hoping it helps.
Really powerful work. Kudos to all involved.
Sounds like advertising
Amazing McCann Melbourne, brought me to tears. So powerful.
Lovely work guys and something special for the end of the year.
N
You are a disgrace and an embarrassment Victoria Police. So many current and ex members kill themselves because of your ignorance and boys club mentality. Time to start enforcing work place manslaughter charges against senior police. You are the laughing stock of the policing world. Fat, unfit, scared, ignorant, unprofessional members who are mostly pretenders and wouldn’t be able to bruise a grape if they punched it. What a waste of money u r.
Vic Pol has a toxic admin culture. Reform is long overdue
This shows real bravery from a client who has recognised an serious long-standing internal issue and wasn’t afraid to put it out there for all to see. And a brave woman to allow this personal story to be told. That this actually got made astounds me. But it makes me proud to part of an industry that fights to make real lasting change where and when they see it is needed.
This is an amazing piece of advertising. It stuns, stays with you, and at the same tim move s you.
Up ther with Grim Reaper, the best TAC stuff and braver than McCann’s othe world-beater beater, Dums ways to die.
The thinking, the scrit, the technology, the courage of the paticipants – all bundled together into an incrcreible piece of communication.
Those of us who choose to work in advertising should be very proud indeed.
Well done McCann and well done Ben, Simon, Andrew and the agency team.
Thank you Belinda. A reminder that great advertising starts with a great cliemt.
Laurie’s legacy lives on.
The Ben effect! So happy to see some great work coming out of McCann again!
This idea was conceived a couple of years ago by a team that’s already left. Well done for making it happen
Well done to all involved – on both the agency and client side – for creating such an important piece of work. Excellent to see it being celebrated here. As for @Truth if you really believe that stunning work like this is the product of just one team ‘years ago’, I’m guessing your involvement was a lot less crucial than you think.