A man without a heart makes an emotional appeal to encourage all Belgians to become an organ donor.
Christophe De Fonseca, who’s from Belgium, died on June 25, 2014. He fell from his bike after his heart stopped beating. It was the last time he would feel a heartbeat. When he woke up in a hospital it was silent in his chest. And it stayed silent. The heartbeat that makes us all feel human was gone.
He calls himself RoboCop, not because he’s extraordinarily strong, but because just like the fictional character he lives on a machine, like a machine. A small pump in his chest replaces his big heart and a battery around his belly keeps it going. Just like we want our smartphones fully charged at any time, for him it’s vital that his mechanical heart is plugged in as much as possible.
Christophe can live without a heart, but the remaining quality of life is minimal at best. He was once an airline pilot with a passion for flying, but that had to be put on hold.
In a touching film, Looking for a Heartbeat from the transplant charity Reborn to be Alive, Christophe goes on a quest for spectacular actions that would skyrocket the heart rate of any normal person. He tries cycling, drifting in a fast car, flying but to no avail.
The only thing that can give him back the sensation of a beating heart is an organ donation.
Shortly before releasing this film Christophe passed away. However, it was his wish to make this project happen, no matter what. Because there are thousands of people who still have a chance to survive. Like this we are reminded again of the crucial importance of organ donation.
The film was created by the Belgian advertising agency Duval Guillaume and directed by Gijs Polspoel of production house Roses Are Blue.
CreditsClient Reborn to be Alive Agency Duval Guillaume, Brussels, Belgium Dries De Wilde, Koenraad Lefever, creative direction; Arnaud Bailly, Karel De Mulder, creation; Marc Van Buggenhout, Daan Feytongs, producers. Production Roses Are Blue Gijs Polspoel, director; Maximiliaan Dierickx, DP; Quinten Prinsen, camera assistant. Music Reinhard Vanbergen; Medhi Charni, Maarten Moesen, sound Sound Effects Prodigious Editorial Vincent Witvrouwen, editor; Robbe Demuynck, exec producer; Els Casier, producer.
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