CASH EPILEPSY

Short List
TitleCASH EPILEPSY
BrandFONDATION FRANÇAISE POUR LA RECHERCHE SUR L'EPILEPSIE
Product/ServiceORGANIZATION DEDICATED TO EPILEPSY RESEARCH
Category B06. Use of Events / Stunts
Entrant SERVICEPLAN HEALTH FRANCE Paris, FRANCE
Idea Creation SERVICEPLAN HEALTH FRANCE Paris, FRANCE
Media Placement SERVICEPLAN HEALTH FRANCE Paris, FRANCE
PR SERVICEPLAN HEALTH FRANCE Paris, FRANCE
Production BAGHERA FILMS Paris, FRANCE
Additional Company TRINITY FILMS Paris, FRANCE
Credits
Name Company Position
Alexander SCHILL SERVICEPLAN GERMANY Global Chief Creative Director
Daniel PEREZ SERVICEPLAN FRANCE Chief Creative Officer
David LELIARD SERVICEPLAN FRANCE Art Director
Astrid PINON SERVICEPLAN FRANCE Art Director
Chloé ROSIAUX SERVICEPLAN FRANCE Copywriter
Damien LEBREUILLY SERVICEPLAN FRANCE Copywriter

Why is this work relevant for Media?

The FFRE, which supports research into epilepsy, wanted to raise awareness about the suffering of people with epilepsy. To do so, we opened a fake shop in Paris for 3 days which pretended to be selling second-hand “cut price” objects. Once in the shop, customers were discovering that the items had all been damaged by their previous owners during an epileptic seizure. The salesman was then explaining that due to stigma about epilepsy and lack of donations, they had to use a shocking ploy to raise awareness. Don't you think this idea deserves a media/use of stunt lion?

Background

Still unknown among the general public, epilepsy is a neurological disease that affects more than 600,000 patients in France and 3 million people including caregivers, yet there is little public awareness of the condition within the general public. Furthermore, people are afraid by the manifestations of this disease (29% of Europeans believe that epilepsy is contagious and 72% of them don’t want to be confronted with an epileptic in their lives). Epileptic seizures most often take the form of unpredictable absences and bouts of unconsciousness that lead to falls. Depending on where they happen, these falls may have minor or serious consequences. So for epileptic patients, even under treatment is under control, the fear of seizure is constant. The French Federation for Research into Epilepsy (FFRE) wanted to highlight the terrible daily experiences of people with epilepsy, change people's perception of people with epilepsy, and launch an appeal for donations.

Describe the creative idea / insights (30% of vote)

To inform people about a disease that repulses them, we decided to make epilepsy attractive by opening a shop in Paris selling second-hand items “at knockout prices”, for 3 days. Once inside the shop, the potential buyers were surprised to discover that the objects had all been damaged by their previous owners during an epileptic seizure. The salesperson was then able to raise the “customers” awareness about epilepsy, and explain that due to indifference or stigma about epilepsy, and a lack of funding and donations, they had to use a shocking ploy to break the indifference towards the disease. The campaign was designed to challenge the public and the media and make the disease a healthcare priority. Filmed using a hidden camera, the customers became the stars of an original video that became the Foundation’s new online campaign: “Cash Epilepsie. Broken lives at cut down prices".

Describe the strategy (20% of vote)

Everyone who has ever witnessed an epileptic seizure has been terrified of the impressive manifestations of the disease (“72% of Europeans don’t want to be confronted with an epileptic in their daily lives.” – NY TIMES). So how to raise people's awareness about a disease that they don't understand and that repulses them? By making this disease attractive. This is why we created the CASH EPILEPSY shop.

Describe the execution (20% of vote)

To illustrate the everyday reality of this little-known disease, the FFRE opened a fake shop in Paris for three days, starting on 30 January, which pretended to be selling second-hand “cut price” objects. The curious shoppers were drawn into the store, surprised to discover that the objects had all been broken or damaged by their previous owners during an epileptic seizure. The salesperson was then able to raise the potential buyers' awareness about epilepsy, and explain that due to indifference or stigma about epilepsy, and a lack of funding and donations, they had to use a shocking ploy so that a store like that. To expand the reach, we also tricked people online with 5 Million fake ads. The descriptions revealed the tragic stories behind each object and proposed to make a donation.

List the results (30% of vote)

The online film got 1 million views in less than 48h, releasing the word of thousands of epileptics. It generated 450 million social interactions. Millions of people joined the conversation generating 1 billion media impressions. Donations increased 1500%, making this little-known disease the most supported cause during the campaign.