A man runs across the street to catch a bus in the rain. When he looks up to climb onto the bus, the view can see his face is very swollen and distorted. He looks like a monster. He grunts as he attempts to breath. As the man climbs onto the bus and walks down the aisle, other passengers move away from him and stare in horror. An old lady takes pity on him and hands him a packet of Theraflu Thin Strips. He immediately takes one. The bus stops and he climbs off a normal looking man. The commercial ends with the words “Theraflu Thin Strips. Good to be back” appearing on the bus’s wet windshield.
Credits
Agency: Saatchi & Saatchi Tony Granger, chief creative officer; Joe Pompeo, group creative director; Rob Lenois, senior copywriter; Rob Perillo, senior art director; Sheldon Levy senior VP/associate director of broadcast production. Production Company: Believe Media Albert Kodagolian, director/DP; Liz Silver, Luke Thornton and Gerard Cantor, executive producers; Chris Crawford, producer; Donna Bartek, production supervisor. Shot on location in Rio de Janeiro. Editorial: Cosmo Street Steve Bell, editor; Robert Hooman, assistant editor; Maura Woodward and Karen Hennegan, producers. Postproduction: Company 3 New York Billy Gabor, colorist. Visual Effects: Method,WCT Productions Toby Brockhurst and Matt Reilly, VFX artists; Gerald Zecker, assistant; Colleen Garvey, producer; Luis Ribeiro, executive producer; Connie Griffin, managing director.,Bill Terezakis, prosthetic designer/special effects makeup artist; Maureen Chan, Coner McCullagh, special effects makeup artists Sound Des
The Best Work You May Never See: Diamond, Director Mark Zibert “Finish It” For Terry Fox Foundation
After losing part of his right leg due to cancer, Terry Fox campaigned to raise national awareness and funding for cancer research by running his Marathon of Hope, a cross-Canada 42-km daily run, on his prosthetic leg. Fox, who died in 1981, is a national hero. His image will be on Canada’s new $5 bill.
In this two-minute video titled “Finish It,” the Marathon of Hope is recreated. It’s all done in one take, and it features an actor/marathon runner who uses a prosthesis on the same leg as Fox. CGI was deployed to make him look more like Fox. To further ensure the actor represented Fox accurately, not only did the actor and team watch and study many videos of Terry, but Terry’s brothers, Fred and Darrel, coached the actor on Terry’s running style and mannerisms. They also created a copy of Terry’s prosthesis for the actor to use for the shoot.
The message is clear. As the Marathon of Hope now marks its 45th anniversary, we now have the opportunity to “Finish It” for Fox, raising money and awareness to get a cure for cancer over the finish line, completing the work that Fox started. The public service film starts with Fox on the marathon run, eventually joined by a crowd of other dedicated runners from all walks of life who take over the race.
Mark Zibert directed via production company Scouts Honour for Toronto agency Diamond. The video features a never-before-heard version of the song “Courage” from Canadian band The Tragically Hip.
“We wanted to create a campaign that captures the magnitude of Terry Fox’s legacy while driving meaningful action,” said Peter Ignazi, chief creative officer at Diamond. “By revisiting the Marathon of Hope with such care and reverence, we aimed to reignite Terry’s mission and... Read More
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