For the 2017 edition, year three of its #MakeWhatsNext campaign–again linked to International Women’s Day–Microsoft aims to build a sense of urgency and scale to an education issue.
In a series of videos–including this anthem piece titled "Change The Odds"–Microsoft asks girls about the problems they are most passionate about solving, conveys their excitement about what they could achieve – ranging from finding solutions to climate change to curing cancer – and also the harsh reality: without the necessary STEM [Science, Technology, Engineering and Math] skills, they probably won’t solve them.
Currently, only 6.7 percent of U.S. women (and 16 percent of women globally) graduate college with STEM degrees. The plea to girls: to change the world stay in STEM and #MakeWhatsNext.
As part of this initiative, Microsoft will introduce new programs and resources on www.MakeWhatsNext.com that will help young girls take the next step in making their STEM dreams a reality, including a new experiental tool being launched by Microsoft and LinkedIn to demonstrate how girls can pursue their passions across industries and social causes.
The campaign created by m:united//McCann launches globally today (3/7/17), just as International Women’s Day is starting around the world, and will span broadcast, online/digital, events and social media including Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and Twitter, which will have a “First View”, a first for Microsoft and Twitter, and a Twitter Conversation Card to showcase the video and drive conversation.
"Change The Odds" was directed by JJ Adler from Tool of North America.
Client Microsoft Agency M;united//McCann Sean Bryan, Tom Murphy, co-chief creative officers; Susan Young, Daniela Vojta, executive creative directors; David Cappolino, copywriter; Julie Koong, art director; Kelly Kim, designer; Elina Rudkovskaya, copywriter, social; William Montgomery, art director, social; David Cliff, director of creative technology; Alicia Foor, creative technologist; Aaron Kovan, director of integrated production; Carolyn Johnson, executive producer; Rebecca Magner, producer; Jeremy Adirim, director of interactive production; Charlotte Popper, interactive producer; Eric Johnson, executive integrated music producer; Sam Belkin, music coordinator.; Michelle Kiely, global director of strategy; Justin Ballheim, strategy director. Production Tool of North America JJ Adler, director; Oliver Fuselier, managing partner, live action; Brad Johns, exec producer; Greg Jones, producer; Laura Merians, DP. Editorial Cosmo Street Editorial Tessa Davis, editor; Josh Berger, assistant editor; Becca Reil, producer; Yvette Sears, exec producer. VFX Framestore New York Sarah Hiddlestone, head of production/EP Karen Czukerberg, sr. producer; Raven Sia, sr. producer; Karl Woolley, head of VR; Andy Rowan Robinson, creative director; Steve Drew, compositing supervisor; Raul Ortego, head of Flame; Beau Leon, colorist; Jonah Braun, color assist; Marc Smith, Abram Seaman, designers; Patrick Ross, Georgios Cherouvim, Georgios Papaioannou, Jacob Slutsky, Glory Zheng, Mohamed Echkouna, Sean Curran, Shayne Ryan, Will Frazier, 3D; Dan Giraldo, Elaina Brillantes, Jose Arauz, Giulia Bartra, Ranran Meng, Chihcheng Peng, Liz Yang, compositing; Callum McKeveny, Rob Go, 2D; Ben Cronin, Deepa Paulus, Katie Rhodes, Megan De Wolf, Paul O’Brien, Savneet Nagi, Tim Greenwood, Tim Osborne, VFX Support (Framestore’s London office) (Toolbox: Flame, Nuke, Maya, After Effects, Houdini, 3D Equalizer)
Top Spot of the Week: BBDO, Director Anthony Frattolillo Get “Packing” For The American Red Cross
Once again, this holiday season, BBDO New York and the American Red Cross have launched a campaign underscoring the urgent needs of families disrupted by disasters--something that occurs every eight minutes across the country, over 7,000 times during the
holidays alone.
Running on TV and online through December, the campaign include this PSA titled “Packing,” directed by Anthony Frattolillo via One Free Play. The spot begins with a family that appears to be preparing for a trip. But the mood shifts dramatically when it is revealed the reason they are really packing is an imminent wildfire, and that they are evacuating to a Red Cross shelter. The spot ends with a call to action: “They’re relying on us. We’re relying on you. Please donate.”
BBDO associate creative director Nicole Dombey shared, “I experienced an evacuation as a child, and I’ll never forget the quiet confusion of that moment. As a team, we wanted to capture that mix of innocence and uncertainty families feel in those moments.”
Director Frattolillo stated, “I’ve packed that same car three times, sat in that same traffic jam, worrying about my safety and the safety of my family, thinking we might not see home again. So when we made this film, I wanted people to feel what that moment is really like, the fear, the uncertainty, and the hope that someone will be there when you need them most.”