The Mannerheim League for Child Welfare (MLL), in collaboration with TBWAHelsinki, has released a powerful short film demonstrating the dangers of unsupervised media consumption by children and highlighting the need for clear labeling of AI generated content.
Titled “The AI abyss,” the film is a plunge into the uncharted waters of AI in the media. It draws a parallel to MLL’s longstanding tradition of empowering children, dating back to their initiatives of teaching children to swim 50 years ago. Today, the challenge lies not in water, but in the media stream, where AI increasingly blurs the line between reality and fiction.
Europol predicts that by 2026, AI could be responsible for creating up to 90% of all media content. This escalating reality, combined with existing online threats, emphasizes the need for effective and prompt parental guidance in children’s media use as well as labeling.
“We need an identifier to clarify whether content is reality-based or AI-produced, much like the Parental Advisory label helps identify content harmful to children. This becomes even more important as children’s media literacy struggles to keep up with the rise of AI,” said Paula Aalto, head of school cooperation and digital youth work at MLL.
“The AI abyss” portrays a young girl receiving a cell phone from her parents without any media literacy education. She embarks on a journey into the “stream of media,” visualized as a pool of water. Initially fascinated by the flow of intriguing media content, her experience soon takes a sinister turn as AI-generated elements morph into disturbing representations of cyber threats. As the girl in the film is rescued from her disturbing experience, we are reminded of the importance of parental intervention in ensuring online safety.
“As a parent myself, I am concerned about my own children’s media use on their phones. Children are constantly exposed to harmful content, and parents must protect them from seeing things that they do not have the ability to process due to their young age. We, parents, are the solution,” said Joni Furstenborg, creative director at TBWAHelsinki.
“The AI abyss” was directed by Iiro Hokkanen via TBWAScreen.
CreditsClient The Mannerheim League for Child Welfare Leena Poutanen, director of communication and fundraising; Paula Aalto, head of school cooperation and digital youth work; Rauna Rahja, head of media education Agency TBWAHelsinki Joni Furstenborg, creative director; Markus Nieminen, strategy director; Tuomas Perälä, sr. copywriter; Hanna Karlsson, designer. Production TBWAScreen Iiro Hokkanen, director; Niko Hatara, exec producer; Tommi Mäkelä, production manager. Motion Design, VFX, AI Anssi Mahlamäki, Cocoa CFX, Jomppe Vaarakallio
NHS England, M&C Saatchi UK, Director Tom Tagholm Team On PSA Highlighting The Overlooked Signs Of A Stroke
National Health Service (NHS) England has unveiled a multichannel campaign, “Act FAST,” to raise awareness of the individual signs of a stroke and get people to call 999 as soon as they suspect they may be experiencing any one symptom. The push, which is part of the ongoing “Help Us, Help You” campaign, was developed in partnership with M&C Saatchi UK.
The campaign depicts everyday situations where everything might seem relatively normal, but where there’s the sign of someone experiencing a stroke.
A key component of the campaign is this :30--directed by Tom Tagholm of Various Films--which sets up the idea that initially, a stroke might not seem like much, highlighting key symptoms: from struggling to use a paint roller, to not being able to smile when watching TV, to slurring your speech when reading a story to your grandchild. The PSA emphasizes that time is critical, ending with the line: “Face or arm or speech, at the first sign, it’s time to call 999.”
Jo Bacon, Group CEO, M&C Saatchi UK, said, “We want to ensure people take action on the first symptom, rather than waiting for more conclusive signs. To help them understand that even when everything seems normal, something serious might be happening.”
Matt Lee, executive creative director, M&C Saatchi UK, commented: “This is important work. We wanted to explore that precise moment when your world shifts, quietly yet powerfully, off its axis during a stroke. We highlight how a tiny external moment can actually be seismic—an extraordinary gear change, framed in a really ordinary way.”
Director Tagholm shared, “My Dad suffered a stroke a few years ago and was saved from the worst by acting quickly, and by the work of the NHS. So there’s... Read More