This film for Procter & Gamble and the My Black Is Beautiful initiative features different African-American parents having “The Talk” with their kids about racial bias and how it can make life more difficult–and at times even more dangerous.
In one of this piece’s most poignant moments, a girl behind the wheel of a car insists she’s a good driver and her mom doesn’t need to tell her what to do if she gets pulled over. The girl has no intention of getting pulled over because she obeys the speed limit and the rules of the road. Mom doesn’t doubt that but she has to explain to her daughter, “This is not about getting a ticket. This is about you not coming home.”
The My Black Is Beautiful campaign is designed to spark a conversation about racial bias. Malik Vitthal of The Corner Shop directed “The Talk” for BBDO New York, with support from minority-certified consulting firm Egami Consulting Group.
Credits
Client Procter & Gamble My Black is Beautiful Agency BBDO New York David Lubars, chief creative officer, worldwide; Greg Hahn, chief creative officer, NY; Marcel Yunes, Rick Williams, creative directors; Nedal Ahmed, associate creative director/copywriter; Bryan Barnes, associate creative director/art director; David Rolfe, director of integrated production; Dan Blaney, executive producer; Whitney Collins, sr. producer; Melissa Chester, executive music producer. Production The Corner Shop Malik Vitthal, director; Anna Hashmi, exec producer; Lasse Frank, DP; Wynn Thomas, production designer; Isis Mussenden, costume designer; Jessica Miller, producer/head of production; Stephen Love, Blake Pickens, line producers. Editorial Work Editorial Rich Orrick, lead editor; Theo Mercado, editor; Jamie Lynn Perritt, producer; Erica Thompson, exec producer. VFX The Mill NY Jeff Robins, 2D lead; Sophie Mitchell, producer; Rachael Trillo, exec producer. Music Pulse Music NY Julia Piker, composer; Dan Kuby, composer/exec producer; Steve Grywalski, producer. Sound Design Trinite Studios Brian Emrich, sound designer. Audio Post Heard City Phil Loeb, Keith Reynaud, mixers; Sasha Awn, Andi Lewis, Jackie James, producers; Gloria Pitagorsky, managing director. Color Company 3 Clare Movshon, Alex Lubrano, producers; Sofie Borup, colorist. Multicultural Strategic Communications Egami Consulting Group
Directed by Steve Rogers via Biscuit Filmworks for agency VCCP London, this spot titled “Memory” opens with a daughter visiting her father at his home, a bar of Cadbury Wholenut chocolate in hand. Her father, living with dementia, smiles at the sight of the chocolate, recognizing it as a gift his daughter has bought him since she was a child. In this moment, he doesn’t recognize her as his daughter. Instead, he begins to tell her how this ritual gifting always makes his wife laugh because, as he proudly reveals, he’s always hated nuts.
The daughter can’t help but laugh, touched by the idea that her father has kept this secret for so long. As he looks at her earnestly, he asks her not to tell his “daughter”--meaning her--about the secret, because “it makes her so happy.” The daughter responds softly. “It does.” She recognizes the quiet generosity of her father’s long-held secret, something he’s kept hidden from her all these years, despite not always remembering who she is.
Cadbury is committed to telling inclusive stories rooted in human truths that are representative of the U.K. To ensure the story’s accurate portrayal of people living with dementia, Cadbury consulted with specialists throughout the development of the film.
Cadbury has extended its partnership with Alzheimer’s Research UK, the UK’s leading dementia research charity, into 2025. The two organizations first joined together in 2024 to celebrate the role of Cadbury in the nation’s shared memories and to support the charity’s mission for a cure for dementia.
“Memory” was brought to life with the help of VCCP’s global content production studio Girl&Bear. The film will run across the U.K. throughout 2025, appearing on TV, VOD,... Read More
