The innocence of a child’s understanding is precious. And it makes adult hearts melt. Make-A-Wish Canada and 95% of Canadian doctors know that it’s also medicinal. 95% of medical practitioners surveyed believe wishes improve health outcomes. Further, patients who had a wish fulfilled were 2.5 times less likely to have an unplanned hospital visit and 1.9 times less likely to use the emergency department.

Zulu Alpha Kilo has turned this into a life-affirming cause campaign. Simply by using the innocence of a child’s understanding – unembellished. The campaign, Wishes Are Medicine for Make-A-Wish Canada features self-recorded video messages from real wish kids describing their journeys with critical illness and a new treatment that could help improve their outcomes. The twist comes when the kids hold up a doctor’s prescription, not for pills or procedures, but for a wish: to visit a theme park, swim with dolphins, ride a rollercoaster, or become a princess. 

The new national brand campaign redefines the meaning of a wish and its impact on children facing critical illness. At the heart of the campaign is a powerful message delivered by sick children themselves – Wishes are not just a nice-to-have; they’re an essential part of treatment.

“Wishes are life-changing prescriptions,” stated Meaghan Stovel McKnight, chief executive officer, Make-A-Wish Canada. “They’re a powerful part of a child’s treatment journey, bringing both children and their families strength, hope and resilience — all of which are essential in fighting the impact of critical illness. Not all medicine comes in a bottle.”

The campaign was directed by Jordan Findlay from Boldly Productions. 

“While Make-A-Wish is well-known by Canadians, they may not know there’s research proving the real impact a wish can have,” stated Jenny Glover, CCO at Zulu Alpha Kilo.  “We love the raw simplicity of these stories and hope they help show that wishes are not something extra, but are as essential as medicine in their treatment plan.”

Post-production was led by Outsider Editorial, Alter Ego, and Grayson Matthews, with French adaptation by TFS. Media planning and buying were managed by Zulumatic and Yeeboo Digital.

Beyond film, Zulu Alpha Kilo also crafted a new design system for the campaign, using medical iconography to visually root the brand within the medical space.

Wishes Are Medicine is running across broadcast, social, digital, and out-of-home. Communications will drive to a dedicated landing page with a clear invitation to donate, giving Canadians the chance to help fill a life-changing prescription for a sick child. For more information and to donate, visit makeawish.ca.

Credits
Client: Make-A-Wish Canada
Client Team: Meaghan Stovel McKnight, Deana Shaw, Leanne Gullekson, Rapinder Dhinsa

Agency: Zulu Alpha Kilo
Chief Creative Officer: Jenny Glover, Brian Murray
Chief Design Officer: Stephanie Yung
Creative Director & Art Director: Jacob Gawrysiak
Creative Director & Writer: George Ault
Senior Designer: Paula Dopuda, Ana-Marija Matic
Senior Agency Producer: Kasia Zeniuk
Senior Broadcast Producer: Karen Blazer
Integrated Producer: Ryan Siddon
Director of Integrated Production: Ola Stodulska
Account Team: Jaya Rizzi, Nicole Pagano
Chief Strategy Officer: Maxine Thomas
Executive Director, Comms Planning & Technology: Sean Bell
Strategy Team Elyssa Seidman, Sarah Yim, Kiana Ohori

Media Agency: Zulumatic
Head of Media: Alicia Petralia
Media Team: Shubham, Manav Kapoor, Tania Perales

Media Agency: Yeeboo
Media Team: Trevor Ryckman

Production Company: Boldly
Director: Jordan Findlay
DoP: Antonia Ramirez
Executive Producer & Producer: Sebastien Galina
Executive Producers: Kristoff Duxbury, Shelby Manton, Geoff Manton
Line Producer: Adrian Cheung
Casting: Jigsaw Casting

Editing: Outsider Editorial
Editor: Calum Moore
Assistant Editor: Malavika Anupraj 
Executive Producer: Kristina Anzlinger & Kayan Choi 
Producer: Kelsey Dale-Mcgrath

Sound: Grayson Music Group
Music & Voice Director: Ali Milner
Audio Engineer: Vladimir Nikolic
Sound Designer: Ben Swarbrick
Music Supervisor: Rich Hamilton
Senior Producer: Sharon Yokoyama
Executive Producer: Kelly McCluskey

Colour: Alter Ego Post
Senior Colourist: Eric Whipp
Colour Assistant: Ben Otten
Senior Producer: Genna McAuliffe 

Post Production Online: Zulubot
Online Editor: Goldmond Fong
Assistant Editor: Adrian Gluvakovich
Director of Post Production and Operations: Sarah Dayus
Online Producer: Amy Groll

French Adaptation: The French Shop
Account Team: Catherine Léger
Producer: Bianca Lacasse
Adaptation Director: Valérie Forget