This spot presents a series of flashbacks, showing scenes from a meth addict’s life and the venues in which they took place. First we see dramatic glimpses of a man going into convulsions on a couch. As we see the couch–now sans the man–a female voiceover relates that this is where he went into convulsions.

Next we’re taken to a hospital emergency room where the addict nearly died–and then to an alley adjacent to what appears to be a junkyard. The young female voiceover continues, telling us that this is where he began smoking again right after he got out of the hospital.
And then we see a dark, secluded basement/supply room which is where, the woman says, he hung himself because he couldn’t quit meth.

Finally we see the woman who is speaking to us. She continues, “And this is what I said when he told me he was going to try meth.” What follows is a silence as we see anguish across her face.

An end tag carries the slogan, “Meth. Not Even One,” accompanied by the Montana Meth website address, MontanaMeth.org.

“Ben” is one of four TV spots telling stories based on composites of real testimony from addicts and those close to them across the State of Montana. The campaign tells the heartbreaking stories of kids who saw their friends consumed by addiction–and who recall with guilt and sadness not having said anything when informed that their friends were going to try meth for the first time.

Wally Pfister of Independent Media directed and shot the spots for Venables Bell & Partners, San Francisco. Pfister is a three-time Academy Award-nominated cinematographer (most recently for The Dark Knight), and has successfully nestled in the commercial director’s chair at Independent Media.
    The Venables Bell & Partners’ team consisted of creative director Paul Venables, associate creative director James Robinson, art director Keith Scott, copywriter Paul Johnson, executive agency producer Craig Allen and producer Nicolette Guidotti.

Editor was Paul Martinez of Arcade Edit.

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