It has been a crappy year in the creative industries, even worse than the one before because we blithely expected something different (like conquering Covid and getting on with life – and work).
We’ve had to face some uncomfortable truths about the industries. They’re pressure cookers and many people are feeling stressed, depressed and anxious. For mental Health Day on October 10, nabs, the Canadian charity that supports the health and wellbeing of people in the creative industries, and agency, Cossette, have created a film that makes it OK to not be OK and positions nabs to help.
The social and digital film features Crumbles, a simple cracker (yes, a flour and water cracker; yes, a singing-dancing cracker; yes, he’s adorable) who understands what it’s like to crumble under pressure. Crumbles exists to remind us that our passion, productivity, and dedication to the job don’t need to be sacrificed at the expense of our mental health and wellbeing.
“When we read the brief, we knew our biggest challenge was going to be creating something for an audience whose tolerance for bullshit is pretty low. If we wanted to really get through to our colleagues, we had to come at it from an angle that was brutally honest, but also funny in a very relatable way,” explained Jacob Greer, creative director at Cossette.
“We all love what we do, which makes recognizing the signs of burnout even harder. We’ve all become a bit too accustomed to being overworked. Crumbles is here to tell it like it is — sometimes this job can take more than it gives, so as an industry we need to make more of an effort to take care of ourselves and look after each other,” added Nicole Ellerton, creative director at Cossette.
“Now is the perfect time to start a conversation about the state of our collective mental health and wellbeing. During the last 18 months alone, the demand for our services has skyrocketed, with over 3,600 people reaching out to us for various reasons including mental health issues, unemployment, illness and financial difficulties,” stated Mark Neves, Director, Central at nabs. “We hope that this campaign encourages people within the industry — from all levels of seniority — to recognize the signs of mental burnout and distress early and take advantage of the many services and resources that nabs has available. No one needs to go through this alone.”
“During the pandemic, the lines between work and home blurred, and many of us, myself included, have found ourselves working harder and longer than ever before,” noted Cat Wiles, chief strategy officer at Cossette. “A lot of us are still working from home and still trying to find the right balance, which makes this film incredibly important and timely. For anyone who sees themselves reflected in the film, let it be both a reminder and reassurance that you don’t have to wait until the point that you feel burned out before you put your hand up to get the help you need.”
The campaign will will be amplified by influencers and execs within the North American ad industry sharing stories about their own mental health challenges. The film’s original song, This Job Can Break You, becomes available to stream on Spotify on October 11.
Credits
Client: nabs
Title: This Job Will Break You
Executive Director: Jay Bertram
Marketing Chair, Board of Directors: Kate Torrance
Director, Central: Mark Neves
Agency: Cossette
Chief Creative Officer: Peter Ignazi
Executive Creative Directors: Craig McIntosh, Jaimes Zentil
Creative Directors: Nicole Ellerton & Jacob Greer
Producer: Sarah Moen
Senior Strategy Director: Geraldine Tixier
Group Business Director: Asmait Hailu
SVP, General Manager: Kathy McGuire
Production Company: Skin & Bones
Director: Edward Andrews
Executive Producer: Liane Thomas
Line Producer: Joan Bell
Director of Photography: Barry Parrell
Animation & Online: Tantrum Studio
Creative Director: Dominik Bochenski
Animator: Sean McLaughlin
Look Dev/Lighting: Dominik Wojtarowicz
3D Artist: Rogerio Miyagi
Compositors: Davide Di Santo, Dexter Huizenga
Modeller: Bill Davidson
Character Design: Gina Romo
Senior Colourist: Dominik Bochenski
On Set VFX Supervisor: Dan Ciancone
Producer: Margarita Reynes
Executive Producer: Victoria Holt
Casting: Jigsaw Casting
Casting Director: Shasta Lutz
Offline Edit: Outsider Editorial
Editor: Chris Murphy
Executive Producer: Kristina Anzlinger Producer: Kayan Choi
Assistant Editor: Nathan Olszewicki
Audio House: Pirate
Music Director: Chris Tait
Producer: Joanne Uyeyama
Composer: Ari Posner
Engineer: Ian Boddy
