The Joy Smith Foundation has launched “See the Trafficking Signs,” a powerful national awareness and education campaign intended to prevent Canadian youth from being lured into the sex trade.
Created by Toronto agency Diamond, the campaign is designed to educate people on the common signs that someone may be at risk of being groomed and lured into sex trafficking.
This harrowing “See The Trafficking Signs” campaign video, directed by Taylor Reid of Untitled Films in Toronto, gives a first-hand look at how people are slowly groomed and coerced by sex traffickers. “It was the first time I really felt special,” says one person atop a pleasant musical background. The video takes on an increasingly darker tone as it progresses throughout four different story lines, explaining how their traffickers began exerting more control–from getting them to wear clothing he liked, to buying them a second phone. It ends with the message that someone nearby is being lured into the sex trade. The spot is being promoted online as well as on TV across Canada.
“The warning signs of sex trafficking are there in plain sight, if you know what to look for,” said Dave Stevenson, SVP, creative director at Diamond. “This campaign is about making trafficking signs as obvious as traffic signs to give every Canadian the know-how to keep youth safe.”
The national awareness campaign is also being supported by an extensive paid and organic social campaign using out-of-home and digital banners. The campaign’s out-of-home component includes posters that will be placed in schools, each showing various youth inside the campaign’s visual motif, a triangular warning sign.
The ads also feature an overview of the nine warning signs that someone is being groomed by a trafficker. All the campaign assets drive to the TraffickingSigns.ca website, which contains additional information.
To help amplify the message, Diamond and the Joy Smith Foundation are also partnering with influencers whose combined reach exceeds more than 1.5 million to help spread the message. Each influencer is being given a red “Warning Signs” shirt, as well as a print of each of the nine warning signs to talk through:
- New clothing, jewelry or gifts without having money
- Frequent sleepovers at a friend’s house
- Sudden interest in a man several years older
- A sudden change in style of dress or makeup
- A new circle of friends and isolation from their old group
- Change in attitude towards school, regular activities, friends
- Grades dropping
- Unexplained cuts or bruises
- Using two cell phones
The awareness campaign is being supported by police at both the national and regional levels, reflecting the fact that sex trafficking is widespread, occurring in communities both large and small and from coast to coast.
The Joy Smith Foundation works to provide access to information so that every Canadian man, woman and child is educated and empowered to stay safe from manipulation, force, or abuse of power designed to lure and exploit them in the sex trade or forced labor.
CreditsClient Joy Smith Foundation Agency Diamond Josh Diamond, partner; Peter Ignazi, chief creative officer; David Stevenson, SVP, creative director, copywriter; Andrew Mowbray, creative director/art director; Bruce Harris, art director; Mark Graham, Vinny Gill, Adam Tinker, Dan Vink, Leia Comegna, producers; Alexandra Kolar, Amanda Lazarovitz, Paul Ibrahim, Alix Mackenzie, digital strategy; Kyle Lin, Varsha Kumar, Neelu Vasishat, Alex Rudow, Karandeep Sandhu, Milana Gladilina, influencer support; Kyle Nielsen, design director; Brenna Preston, Clarissa D’costa, Jenna Cronje, Sarah Hickey, Evelyn Wong, designers; Mark Graham, executive producer. Production Company Untitled Films, Toronto Taylor Reid, director; Tom Evelyn, Lexy Kavluk, exec producers; Paul Reid, DP; Ian Fingerland, line producer; Sheri Monk, wardrobe. Casting Powerhouse Casting Andrew Hayes, casting director. Sound & Music Composition Berkeley Inc. Jared Kuemper, creative director. Editorial Nimiopere Steve Puhach, editor; Paula Hicks, Julie Axell, exec producer; Hannah Stone, assistant editor. Color, VFX, Online Darling Morgan Campbell, producer; Patrick Samaniego, colorist; Eric Kinsbury, assistant; Lauren Rempel, online; Russell Hanson, assistant.
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