The Breast Cancer Screenings
Rialto Channel / Ascendant Dx / NZ Breast Cancer Foundation
Issue 42 | March 2017
Agency
DDB Group New Zealand
Creative Team
Chief Creative Officer Damon Stapleton Executive Creative Director Shane Bradnick Creative Directors Brett Colliver Mike Felix Christie Cooper James Conner Art Director Jake O’Driscoll Copywriter Sylvia Humphries
Production Team
Lead Business Partner Nikki McKelvie Senior Business Manager Demi Nielsen Business Manager Bella Macdonald Studio Manager Marcel de Ruiter Print Producer Julz Lane Executive Producer Judy Thompson Agency Producers Alva Casey Jane Mill Digital Director Liz Knox Executive Digital Producer Johannes Gertz Head of Digital Design Jason Vertongen Digital Designer David Hirschberg
Other Credits
Rialto Channel General Manager Roger Wyllie Marketing Executive Natalie Crane Ascendant Dx CEO Omid Moghadam Chief Scientist Anna Daily Senior Scientist Linsday Rutherford Executive Assistant Jen Morio New Zealand Breast Cancer Foundation CEO Van Henderson Research and Comms Manager Adèle Gautier
Date
Oct 1 – Nov 1, 2016
Background
Rialto Channel, the home of serious cinema, wanted to show that their films connected with audiences on a much deeper level. They wanted their audiences to be a part of the story, using films in a way they've never been used before: to fight breast cancer.
Idea
Breakthrough research had discovered that tears could be used to detect breast cancer... and nothing makes you cry like a good movie. So Rialto Channel partnered with the scientists and the Breast Cancer Foundation to create 'The Breast Cancer Screenings', a research event in a cinema. Films were played designed to reduce the audience to tears - with a team of researchers there to collect them (the tears).
Over the course of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Rialto invited women to the event with an integrated campaign and themed their entire channel with tearjerker films selected by cancer survivor and film blogger Helene Ravlich.
Results
After sold-out sessions, The Breast Cancer Foundation received worldwide coverage. Rialto saw an 8% increase in revenue on the previous month. And most importantly, the researchers received a huge sample bank of tears – demonstrating the power of a good film.
Our Thoughts
Funny how the word ‘stunt’ has acquired perjorative connotations. Stunts got Houdini lasting fame. And that’s what a good stunt will do for you, get people talking. And as they talk, maybe, just maybe they take on board your message.
I mean, really, this is weird. It’s tear farming. (I knew someone who farmed snakes to milk them of their venom and this doesn’t feel too different.)
On the other hand, it would have given women an excuse to have a night out on their own or with the girls and it did help raise awareness of a disease which, if spotted early (see pages 46-47), can be treated.