“My three year old twins were watching the road – as children do, dumbstruck (traffic is a wonderful soporific) – from their twin car seats. It was after-school peak hour, so the going was tedious. Suddenly, a black SUV made a very ambitious bid for the too small spot in front of my car and I had to brake hard to give his fat arse enough room to get in. That was my first surprise. The second was the shout, “F*** off,” in unison and filling the car. My little guys had learned the first rule of driving from their father.” [ed]

Needless to say, The Stable endorses this campaign idea.

Objective reporting starts here: Clemenger BBDO Melbourne’s new campaign for The Transport Accident Commission (TAC) emphasises a simple [and unassailable: ed] fact: How a parent drives now can strongly influence how their children drive later.

The campaign is based on research that shows that children start taking in their parents’ driving behaviours at an earlier age than most people would expect. [see above: ed]

“Every time a parent gets behind the wheel, their children are watching their behaviour, both good and bad. By the time a child goes for their driving licence, their attitudes on the road have already started to form,” Samantha Buckis, TAC road safety project co-ordinator noted.

Clemenger has taken TAC advertising in particular, and road safety ads in general, down a new path. Strings does not show a car accident or even use actual cars. Instead, characters are portrayed on a dark stage, with puppet strings representing the influence a parent has over their child’s future driving behaviour.

Clemenger BBDO Melbourne creative director, Stephen de Wolf, explained the complexities of the shoot, “We designed an intricate rig that linked our father and son, with professional puppeteers directing our talent. The 60- and 30-second spots were filmed in single takes, so we required a perfectly timed and synchronised performance from both of them,” de Wolf said.

The campaign includes TV, OOH, print, digital, social and radio.

Creative credits:

Agency: Clemenger BBDO Melbourne

Creative chairman: James McGrath

Executive creative director: Ant Keogh

Creative director: Stephen de Wolf

Senior copywriter: Jim Robbins

Senior art director: Luke Thompson

Print producer: Sharon Adams

Executive producer TV: Sonia Von Bibra

Senior agency producer TV: Karolina Bozajkovska

Production Company: Finch

Director: Tomas Mankovsky

Producer: Camilla Dehnert

DoP/cinematographer: Geoffrey Simpson

Post Production Company: Method Studio/Glassworks

Music composer/arranger: Theodore Vidgen

Photographer (Match Photography): Stephen Boniface

Sound house: Flagstaff

Sound designer/engineer: Paul Le Coutier

VFX: Glassworks