With the help of AI, nonprofit criminal justice advocacy organization Worth Rises and creative ad agency EP+Co have resurrected President Abraham Lincoln to deliver a speech expressing his regret for including an exception in the U.S. Constitution’s 13th Amendment that has allowed slavery to continue and imploring the 2024 Presidential candidates and constituents to finally end slavery for all by passing the Abolition Amendment.
The 13th Amendment is celebrated for ending slavery in the U.S., and President Lincoln was among its biggest champions. However, the amendment includes an exception clause that has been understood throughout history to allow slavery and involuntary servitude to be used as punishment for crime. While President Lincoln was aware of the exception, he used it to solidify bipartisan support of the 13th Amendment knowing that it could be used to re-enslave Black people, albeit a smaller population. It encouraged the criminalization, incarceration, and re-enslavement of Black people during Reconstruction, and it continues to protect the enslavement of incarcerated people today.
Created with AI technology deployed by EP+Co and its full in-house production team, “The Most Famous Speech Never Given” imagines President Lincoln’s regret over having agreed to the exception in the 13th Amendment and his outrage about the extent to which it used today to continue the institution of slavery in the U.S.
Using Lincoln’s past speeches and writings, EP+Co used AI technology to write a speech worthy of Honest Abe. The agency also worked closely with Harold Holzer, a leading Abraham Lincoln authority and chairman of the Lincoln Forum, to ensure that not only the speech itself, but Lincoln’s appearance and voice were as accurate and authentic as possible. The campaign’s font is also inspired by Lincoln’s handwriting.
Today, the exception clause continues to disproportionately affect Black and Brown people, who are disproportionately incarcerated across the country and forced to work for pennies an hour or no pay under the threat of additional punitive measures, such as the loss of family visits and solitary confinement.
John Cornette, chief creative officer at EP+Co, said, “We believe we have a responsibility to use our creative resources and talents for the greater good. For us, advertising isn’t about selling products. It’s about building belief for brands and causes we love–causes like End the Exception. As an agency, we’re deeply committed to driving meaningful change in the world. Right now, by inspiring congress to pass the Abolition Amendment to end slavery once and for all. ”
CreditsClient Worth Rises Agency EP+Co John Cornette, chief creative officer; Danny Miller, EVP, director of content production; Jillian Cornette, VP, executive content producer; RG Lacandola, content capture lead; Michael Guastaferro, director of motion design; Taylor Lucas, SVP, creative director, CoLab; Will Isom, VP, creative director; Wejdan Ba-Arma, sr. art director; Spike McClinton, sr. copywriter; Chris Plating, chief strategy officer; Nina Ruhe, digital content strategist. Consultant Harold Holzer, Lincoln scholar. Cast Graham Sibley, motion capture actor.
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