Kids in hospital feel lightyears from home. Hospitals United for Sick Kids and CHEP have illustrated that in an animated short film called Blip: Lightyears from Home, produced by Assembly, Finch, and Sonar.
The three-and-a-half minute film follows Blip – a lovable space creature, on a journey to return home. Blip, though not sick, is displaced and desperately missing home. Its journey back is unpredictable, full of ups and downs. Similar to the experience of hospitalised children. The campaign aims to drive support from partner brands to reach its goal of receiving AU$100m by 2028 to fund research, equipment and in-hospital, near-home and in-home treatments.
Blip is a symbol that partner brands can use to show their support for Hospitals United for Sick Kids, and something consumers can look out for when they shop.
Blip is set to take over shelves in stores around the country in partnership with national brands like Coles, Arnott’s, Lowes and Swisse Wellness, Each purchase featuring Blip or the Hospitals United for Sick Kids logo will contribute to vital funds for research, technology, treatments, and services benefiting sick children across Australia.
Additionally, the fifth edition of the Hospitals United for Sick Kids and Coles $2 donation card campaign will run in Coles supermarkets nationally between April 10 and 23 2024.
Blip’s story is running across TV, outdoors and social media, enhanced by collaborations with TikTok, oOH Media, Channels 7,9 and 10, along with Val Morgan.
Newly appointed CEO of Hospitals United for Sick Kids, Nicky Bowie, stated, “Hospitals United for Sick Kids is a national alliance of children’s hospitals, foundations and paediatric services. We are for all kids, all diseases, all injuries. With Blip, we hope to reach out and inspire consumers to make simple changes to their daily shopping by choosing products that help get sick kids back to the things they miss.”
Paul Meates, executive creative director at CHEP, added “One highly successful product has rapidly grown to two, then three, and so on. We suddenly needed something to tie them together. Something emblematic of what it’s like to be a kid in hospital. And something that could appear on any product to make it instantly recognisable as a product that helps sick kids get home from hospital. Blip was our solution – a cute, vulnerable space character far from home.”
A range of Blip merchandise is also set to launch later in the year, with all proceeds being donated to Hospitals United for Sick Kids.
The campaign follows the organisation’s recent rebrand from Curing Homesickness to Hospitals United for Sick Kids and will help boost the over $7 million raised since 2019 to support its mission of getting sick kids home to the things they miss the most.
Credits:
Client: Hospital United For Sick Kids
CEO: Nicky Bowie
Marketing & Communications Lead: Shilpi Khanna
Corporate Partnerships Manager: Tammy Grillo
National Coordinator: Kim Roberts
Social Media Manager: Danielle Johnson
Agency: CHEP Network Sydney
Production Company: Assembly
Director: Matt von Trott
Executive Producer: Jane Oak
Lead Art Director & Lead Animator: Joshua Fourt-Wells
Animators: Frankie Principe & Elliot Stronge
Production Company: Finch
CEO: Rob Galluzzo
Managing Director & Executive Producer: Corey Esse
Executive Producer: Loren Bradley
Music & Sound: Sonar Music
Original Music Composition: Matteo Zingales
Additional Music + Production: Josh Pearson
Vocalist: Josie Mann
Senior Sound Designer: Andy Stewart
Head of Sound: Timothy Bridge
Producer: Haylee Poppi
Executive Producer: Sophie Haydon
