First we see a chalkboard on which is scrawled today’s lesson: “How to Talk To Your Kids About Drugs.”
Then we’re thrust directly into classroom interaction but with a role reversal twist. The “teacher” seated at the head of the class is a youngster–portrayed by Callan McAuliffe who stars in the recently released Rob Reiner film Flipped–and the “students” he’s addressing are all adult parents.
Linda, one of the students, has been called up to the front of the class. She stands near the chalkboard and starts to bob her head up and down and rock to an imaginary beat. Clearly this is a bit awkward for her as she’s stiff and upright though somehow trying to keep cool, rhythmic timing.
Linda then launches into her rap song:
“Don’t do drugs.
You’ll end up like a thug.
And you’ll make your mother sad.
And you’ll make your father mad.
“Don’t do drugs.
Drugs are bad.
Don’t do drugs.
Drugs are bad.
“Don’t tow that line.
You’ll think it’s just one time.
You’ll start doing crack.
And you’ll have a heart attack.
“Don’t do drugs.
Drugs are bad.
Don’t do drugs.
Drugs are bad.
And you’ll make your mother sad.”
McAuliffe’s reaction is one of polite, understated disbelief, leading him to a suggestion which in fact is the lesson of the day. He says, “Thank you, Linda. Have you ever tried just talking?”
Linda shrugs. A voiceover chimes in, “Learn how to talk to your kids about drugs at Timetotalk.org,” a website address which is now written on the chalkboard, accompanied by the logo of Partnership for a Drug-Free America.
Classroom campaign
Mark and Matt Hoffman, a.k.a. The Hoffman Brothers of Santa Monica-based production company harvest, directed this and three other PSAs in a Partnership campaign for Campbell-Ewald Detroit. Each spot had the same ensemble cast, with different featured parents in classroom scenarios.
Matt Hoffman told SHOOT that the biggest challenge of the spots was that “they not feel preachy…We didn’t want the kid to be talking down to the parents. Yes, we were poking fun at the parents being out of touch but not in a mean-spirited way. We wanted the work to be humorous and entertaining while getting an important message across.”
Key in conveying that message was the casting. Matt recalled the auditions when he asked Lindy Loundagin, who played the rappin’ mom Linda, to freestyle an anti-drug rap. She improvised the song which was heard in the final “Rap” spot.
“It was pure genius,” said Hoffman. “She pulled that out of her head. We recorded it during the audition.”
Loundagin earned a role in the ensemble cast but the rap-driven spot wasn’t part of the planned campaign. Still the Hoffmans hoped to make it a reality. Fortunately after all the scripted work was shot, there was some time left in the day to quickly lens “Rap.”
Hoffman said he also felt fortunate to secure McAuliffe who was recommended to them by William Morris Endeavor (which also is the talent agency representative for The Hoffman Brothers). “Callan happened to be available and he was perfect. We wanted to avoid actor-y type kids. Callan was what we envisioned–someone likeable who didn’t talk down to the parents. He’s a talented actor.”
7D
All the campaign spots were shot by DP Tim Suhrstedt with a Canon 7D Mark II. Hoffman credited Suhrstedt with terrific work, noting that this was the first time the DP had used the 7D.
As for why they opted to go with the 7D, Hoffman explained, “The Partnership was on a tight budget and we wanted to keep the cameras rolling without having to worry about how much film we were using. We were able to move fast and continually shoot with a two-camera set-up. And it contributed to us having some time left over so we could get the ‘Rap’ commercial at the end of the day.”
