Loneliness among the elderly is on the rise, with a million older people going over a month without speaking to anyone, according to Age UK. And during COVID-19, that sense of isolation has worsened. Yet the virtual worlds of gaming have become places where gamers can build and maintain real-world relationships. “Beyond Generations,” an initiative by Xbox and McCann London, is aimed at bridging that generational divide in families, by showing elderly people the relationship-building potential of today’s games, and by getting younger people to start gaming and connecting with the older people in their lives.
The “Beyond Generations” platform launches with two filmed experiments, airing on Xbox’s YouTube and Twitter channels, each following the story of a different real family. This particular film, “Mary & Jason,” tells the story of Jason and his great-aunt, who live far apart and have never really known each other. The filmed experiments document how going on virtual road trips together in Forza or sailing on virtual ships together in Sea of Thieves, things that are no longer possible for them to do in real life, become an ice-breaker for opening up to each other about their lives and forming a deeper relationship, something sorely missing from ordinary video calls.
Beyond the films, Xbox’s broader mission is to encourage families dealing with loneliness to begin connecting more through gaming.
Recognizing that most elderly people don’t have a console, while younger people often have an old console gathering dust, Xbox is introducing a “ReBoxing” initiative–a subversion of the category trend of unboxing videos. The ReBoxing initiative is a project to empower gamers, who might have recently upgraded to a new console, to gift their old console to an elderly person in their life–the first step in starting to connect with each other.
The ReBoxing Kit, downloadable (in the U.K. only) from the campaign website, includes simple tools that people can use if they wish to box up their old console and send it to an older family member. This includes gifting messaging cards, a “What’s in the Box” checklist, as well as simple product tags that will make it easy for older family members to understand what each item does and how they fit together, as soon as they open the box.
To help ignite this spark of connection within families, Xbox has partnered with multiple charities around the globe dedicated to supporting the needs of older people. In the UK, Xbox will support Age UK, and their work internationally through Age International.
“This initiative is close to our hearts because it shows the power gaming has to make a genuine difference in people’s lives. And the more people who take up the call and start ReBoxing their old consoles and giving them to their grandparents, the more those silos of loneliness start to break down. We’re honored to partner with Xbox to help nudge families a little bit closer together,” said Sanjiv Mistry, ECD at McCann London.
CreditsClient Xbox Agency McCann London Laurence Thomson, Rob Doubal, chief creative officers of McCann UK and co-presidents, McCann London; Jamie Mietz, Sanjiv Mistry, executive creative directors; James Crosby, William Cottam, sr. creatives; Lisa Carrana, head of design; David Coates, designer. Production Agency (Craft) Sergio Lopez, chief production officer; Sophie Chapman-Andrews, head of integrated production; Alec Christie, exec producer; Zara Balfour, sr. producer; Pedro Pinto, head of postproduction; Jamie Cooper, post producer; Sarah Hall, producer. Production Company Craft Chris Fowles, director; Zara Balfour, producer; Terrence Wilkins, DP; Chris Davey, composer; Alex Young, editor; Toby Burden, assistant producer; Ashley Joiner, assistant editor; Marti Guiver, Luke Makepeace, assistant camera; Mihai Meirosu, sound design & mix; Simon Hall, online editor; David Devine, COVID supervisor; Son of Alan, illustrator. Color Grade Framestore Stefan Perry, colorist.
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