This tongue-in-cheek regional Blue Cross Blue Shield spot introduces us to a young man who aspires to ride West and become a Pony Express rider. He needs two things, though–one he gets from his mom, a Blue Cross Blue Shield healthcare card; the other he will have to develop–a better sense of direction.
Wally Pfister of RESET Content directed and shot “Express” for agency HY Connect. Grant Gustafson of Cutters edited the spot.
Client Blue Cross Blue Shield (regional covering 10 states) Agency HY Connect Kevin Houlihan, EVP, creative and production; Michael Matykiewicz, Colin Quinn, VPs/creative directors; Nathen Grigsby, producer. Production RESET Content Wally Pfister, director/DP; Jeff McDougall, exec producer. Telecine Company 3 Tyler Roth, colorist. Editorial Cutters Grant Gustafson, editor; Billy Montross, assistant editor; Craig Duncan, exec producer; Heather Richardson, producer. VFX/Finishing The Mill Jamie Beckwith, 2D lead artist; Theo Maniatis, Mike Sarabia, 2D artists; Jeff Boddy, Anzie Lee, Josh Van Praag, motion graphics; Andrew Sommerville, exec producer; Mike Pulian, producer. Music HUM Audio Post Chicago Recording Company Eric Cauwels, mixer.
Continuing their partnership to combat the mental health crisis among America’s youth, the Ad Council and McCann New York have released the latest installment of the “Sound It Out” campaign which focuses on helping parents and caregivers have meaningful conversations with their kids about emotional wellbeing.
The new work, “Listening is a Form of Love,” focuses on the important role parents and caregivers play in supporting young people’s emotional wellbeing and is supported by new data from Surgo Health’s Youth Mental Health Tracker. The survey highlights that: 55% of youth (ages 10-24) report mental health struggles; and one in five youth report symptoms of depression, and one in four report symptoms of anxiety.
The film includes an interactive digital experience that invites parents to practice “holding space” by pressing the space bar to listen to kids sharing what they wish their parents could hear, in their own words. Along with this literal interpretation of the active listening the campaign encourages, the website also gives valuable tools to help parents and caregivers be better listeners, and in turn, better support their kids.
There is also this 60-second PSA--directed by Alex Fischman Cardenas via Greenpoint Pictures--which underscores the power and importance of listening to your loved ones.
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