The world’s flatline expectations about people with cerebral palsy are about to be quashed. A global awareness and donation campaign by DUDE Milan for FightTheStroke, show that You’ve Got to be Ballsy to have Cerebral Palsy.

The hero of the campaign called More Than Palsy, is a slam poem by Scottish actor, playwright and CP advocate, Jack Hunter, who is living with cerebral palsy himself, and the two-minute video DUDE Milan has built around it. They paint an authentic picture of the challenges faced by the cerebral palsy community through their own stories – a stark reminder that life with cerebral palsy is not for the weak. It takes strength to be a disabled person in a non-disabled world. It mixes stills and video to powerfully convey the small yet incessant challenges that make up the daily life of a person with cerebral palsy – from the physical frustration at tying one’s shoelaces or trying to use a tampon, to the mental hardship of being bullied by “normies”. The film, directed by filmmaking collective Broga’s, also features Mario, the son of the organisation’s founders, Francesca Fedeli and Roberto D’Angelo, who is living with cerebral palsy.  

It is thought that between 17-50 million people globally live with cerebral palsy, it remains an underrepresented and neglected disability – with even major reports unable to confirm the exact numbers. FightTheStroke, based in Italy and connected to an international network, promotes the rights of young stroke survivors and people living with cerebral palsy.

More Than Palsy launched in advance of World Cerebral Palsy Day on October 6. The full-length version of the campaign film will run on Fight The Stroke’s website as well as across the foundation’s social channels including YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, X, TikTok and LinkedIn. A 30-second version, featuring the dubbed vocals of Italian rapper, Moder, will also run on TV in Italy. 

Francesca Fedeli, president of the FightTheStroke, stated, “When our son, Mario, was born in 2011 with a prognosis of cerebral palsy, friends began sending me the poem, Welcome to Holland by Emily Perl Kingsley, which is still often shared today as a consolatory metaphor for being the parent of a child with a disability. But now, in 2025, that vision feels outdated: disability is not an ‘unexpected journey’ to be accepted with resignation, but a life condition that must be met with concrete tools, guaranteed rights, and full social participation. It’s time to shift our perspective from consolation to the need for systemic change. That’s why, together with DUDE, we chose the sharp words of Jack Hunter’s slam poetry to deliver a collective message addressed to citizens and institutions around the world: ‘You’ve got to be ballsy to have cerebral palsy’.

“The invitation to people living with this condition is to show others what they can and cannot do with cerebral palsy, in order to help change the disabling context – supported also by the FightTheStroke, which today assists more than 1,200 families in Italy and networks with other associations in over 60 countries worldwide.”

Lorenzo Picchiotti, CCO & Partner DUDE, added, “When you take on such a delicate project, the first challenge is to avoid a superficial perspective. That’s why we started from Jack Hunter’s personal story and turned it into a collective manifesto.”

Livio Basoli, CCO & Partner DUDE, continued, “Jack’s slam poetry allowed us to portray cerebral palsy without filters, in all its complexity, and to make it a symbol that speaks both to those who live with this condition and to those who are discovering it for the first time.”

Credits:
Agency: DUDE MILANO
Chief Creative Officers & Partners: Livio Basoli, Lorenzo Picchiotti
Associate Creative Directors: Ilaria Biani, Cecilia Rocchetta
Chief Strategy & Innovation Officer: Lorenzo Foffani
Senior Strategic Planner: Grazia Zucchiatti 
Business Director: Elena Panza
Account Manager: Antonia Martone
Account Executive: Maddalena Zoli
Integrated Production Director: Matteo Pecorari
Head of Physical Production: Simone Raddi 
Senior Producer: Maria Chiara Muglia
Producers: Irene Taverna, Vincenzo Perrotta
Junior Producer: Gabriele Lippi
Production Coordinator: Francesca Di Donna
Post Production Director: Seba Morando
Post Producer: Silvia Brigoli

Director, DoP, Editing & 1st AD: Broga’s
Editing & Motion Design – Alessandro Menotti
1st AD  Broga’s
Colour Grading: Giorgia Meacci
Soundtrack and Sound Design & Mix: Tommaso Porro
Sound Design & Mix – Tommaso Porro

Special Thanks to: Istituto comprensivo IQBAL MASIH, Associazione sportiva dilettantistica La Comune Milano, Corte dei Miracoli Milano, Associazione La Nostra Famiglia Bosisio Parini – Giovanni Barbesino, Rebecca Pesce, Mario Tamburini, Panalight SPA, Moovie Film Service Company