Dead Pixels has produced a television advert for mental health charity Mind.
It came about after Dead Pixel Director, Kieran Edwards put a call out on LinkedIn, offering a free film to a charity, which would like to create a meaningful commercial.
It led to more than 100 organisations getting in touch.
“We’d discussed as a team that we’d like to challenge ourselves with a narrative piece and, in doing so, give back to a charity by using our skills to create a free commercial. It was hard to choose who to go with but I really clicked with the Mind team and their cause is one that we all felt very passionate about,” he explained.
“I was overwhelmed with the crew and suppliers that also donated their time and expertise to make this happen. As a paid project, this would have cost the charity six figures – so it’s amazing that we’ve been able to deliver such a result without taking money for our time”.
The film will be broadcast throughout December and will also run on a prime Christmas Eve slot due to a media donation by ITV as part of the Britain Get Talking partnership.
“We are very thankful to every single crew member who generously donated their time and energy to support Mind in producing this film. We’ve been impressed with the whole experience, which started with us providing the basis of an idea that would tie into our wider campaign ‘While There’s Still Time’” said Amy Wing, Senior Video Producer at Mind.
“Kieran was very collaborative in turning that into a script and developing a vision for the film. We hope that this film encourages people to talk about what they’re going through and helps to spark up those all-important mental health conversations, at a time of year that can be especially challenging for some people, as well as helping us to raise vital funds to make sure our services are there for everyone who needs them.”
The voice over was narrated by Mind ambassador and broadcaster, Fearne Cotton.
The full crew list that donated their time and/or services were:
Writer & Director: Kieran Edwards
Producer: Jazz Broom
DoP: Andy Perch
1st AC: Danny Usman
2nd AC: Hannah Wardle
Gaffer: Dan Tunstall
Spark: Nathan Matthews
Spark: Billy Haig
Sound: Ed Eaton
Grip: Dan Shaw
Wardrobe stylist: Rosie Farnworth-Hall
Makeup artist: Katie Wrigley
Production assist: Dan Johnson
Talent (Father): Jamie Bannerman
Talent (Son): George Bellamy
Edit: Kieran Edwards
Grade: Mike Nixon
VFX: Boardwalk Studios
Kit hire: No Drama
Low loader: Action 99 Cars
