Refugees polarise people. Havas London and UK charity, Refugease, are hoping to trigger empathy and understanding about Channel-crossing refugees in the hearts and minds of most Brits, leading to donations. The clever campaign puts commuters and travellers in refugees’ shoes, contrasting the two journeys, and calls for travellers to help refugees avoid their perilous journeys by donating the cost of theirs.
The campaign launched on August 22, the date in which there were the highest number of attempted crossings on record (1295, in 2022), with a takeover of Tottenham Court Road station, print and cinema activations, a striking mural on the Kent Coast and immersive, binaural radio ads based on real distress calls from boats attempting the perilous journey.
Disorienting digital out of home executions will appear on all formats across Central London’s Elizabeth line stations. These intend to put travellers in the shoes of refugees, replicating the terrifying sensation of being in a small boat on the Channel, making viewers feel as though they’re partially submerged in choppy waters before crashing waves plunge them below the waterline. ‘What if this was the only way to reach your destination?’ underlines the message.
A series of chilling radio spots recreates actual transcripts of distress calls made from refugees in small boats, such as one received at 2.53 am in December, 2022. The radio ads have been bought to life by Creative Outpost and use powerful 3D, binaural sound to place the listener first in the boat, and then in and below the water as it capsizes – spilling its nearly 50 occupants into the freezing Channel. The 360-degree sound mix creates a physical sensation of a boat flipping.
Print activations, again shot from below the waterline, highlight the fact that in 7° water in the English Channel, it can take only a minute to drown, as people panic, and shock sets in. A child’s shoe is seen sinking to the bottom of the ocean – a reference to the many children who have lost their lives attempting the journey.
The campaign also features a mural painted directly on the sea wall in Ramsgate, on the Kent Coast. The Orange Iceberg, which uses a mound of orange lifejackets to symbolise the hundreds of migrant lives lost in the Channel, is initially obscured by the sea, only to be fully revealed as the tide recedes, drawing emotional parallels to the power of the sea in pushing tragedy to the shore. This was conceived by Havas London and One Green Bean, and created by street artist, Humor (Hugh Whitaker).
The Havas London campaign was inspired by a creative Look Ahead competition, launched by Contagious, Global, and Transport for London, which invited entrants to submit eye-catching, sharable, experiential OOH campaigns that would take tube passengers on an unforgettable journey. Cinema placements were donated by Pearl & Dean.
Refugease specialises in frontline evacuations (transporting the most vulnerable individuals to safer areas, away from conflict zones), humanitarian aid (responding in real time by serving refugees in transit by providing life-saving aid purchased locally to where it is distributed) and self-reliance initiatives (offering child refugees an education they can build a future on, employment opportunities for refugees, and hydroponic farming systems).
Valentina Osborn, Refugease founder and managing director, stated, “Over the past decade, as wars have escalated, neighbouring countries to conflicts are buckling under the pressure of demands to host ever-increasing numbers of families seeking safety, rendering these environments increasingly inhospitable, as resources are scarce and refugee camps crowded. This has forced refugees to make longer and more dangerous journeys, to the UK for example, to reach safety. This has resulted in an increasing number of tragic drownings in the English Channel. Our aim is first to evacuate civilians from where conflicts are at their most precarious, then we do what we can to add to the resources of neighbouring nations (whether food packages, education, employment opportunities, or sustainable farming systems) – doing what we can to help refugees avoid making dangerous journeys further afield.”
Nathalie Gordon, creative partner at Havas London added, “Never again will we complain about an uncomfortable commute. Understanding the full extent of not only what drives people to believe getting on a boat is their only option, but also what one of these journeys is actually like, is beyond comprehension. That’s why we couldn’t just tell the stories, we had to find ways to fully immerse audiences in the moments instead. Refugease exists to help refugees avoid this journey entirely, and by donating, you will be supporting work that could genuinely mean the difference between life and death.”
Credits:
Client: Refugease
Creative Agency: Global
Creative Director: Anto Chioccarelli
Project Manager: Jess Moscaritolo
Creative Agency: Havas London
Chief Creative Officer: Vicki Maguire
Chief Executive Officer: James Fox
Executive Creative Director: Dan Cole
Creative Partner: Nathalie Gordon
Creative Director: Kate Pozzi
Creatives: Muskaan Razdan & Oscar Frost
Account Director: Kirsty Warren
Planners: Becky Taylor-Wilkinson & Tom King
Integrated Producer: Kat Loizou
Producer: Eleanor Hardy
Design Director: Lorenzo Fruzza
Designers: Morgan Shipley & Darta Losane
Media: Pearl & Dean
Media: Havas Media UK
Post Production: Call Me Al
Post Production & VFX: Prose On Pixels
Retouching: Morph Retouch
Music & Sound: Creative Outpost
PR: One Green Bean
