L'Arche begins Freebird campaign
By Adnews Staff
L’Arche Canada, part of a group representing approximately 150 non-profit organizations in 38 countries, has released a new campaign called “Freebird” to coincide with World Down Syndrome Day on March 21. Developed by animation studio Tonic DNA of Montreal, the campaign features an animated video intended to counter misconceptions about Down syndrome. The creative depicts the life of a boy with Down syndrome dealing with an absent father, a classroom bully and a crush. A teaser has been released in advance of the four-minute video, which will debut on April 19.
“Although the timeline was challenging, the concept and narrative was amazing,” said Joe Bluhm, a director at Tonic DNA. “I was completely moved by the script and the cause, instantly envisioning something free and loose. Knowing that this was a robust story, with half a lifetime of narrative, we couldn’t cut out any of it, yet couldn’t build every detail of the world. Fortunately, my gut feeling was to do something that felt light, familiar and loose enough to evoke an idea that the story is still yet to be written for many of the people that the narrative speaks to. Tightening up and constraining things is not the answer. Letting things be loose and open is. So a light, slightly vintage style felt right. Letting colours flow, letting textures flow and getting glimpses of these memories being told to the viewer through an ephemeral form seems fitting.”