EVCOM member and creative and strategy agency, Raw London, has partnered with the NHS and Islington Council to launch a powerful short film, Our Boys, exploring the impact of negative societal perceptions on young Black men’s mental health.
The 4-minute film takes a conceptual look at mental health while promoting existing community-based support networks that are often overlooked. It’s designed to raise awareness of a new, innovative mental health programme which supports the council’s efforts to tackle inequality.
The campaign addresses the fact that Black men are 17 x more likely to develop severe mental health problems than any other group (1) – often a result of the systemic racism and the discrimination they experience throughout their lives (2).
Raw London worked closely with the NHS and Islington Council to run research and feedback sessions with young men in the area, in order to understand and accurately reflect their experiences within the casting, wardrobe, script, editing and overall concept.
Blessing Alade, Producer at Raw London, said; “We wanted to portray a story that communicated the support framework in key scenarios that were realistic. The sessions were crucial in helping us to authenticate the storyline, provide context and characterise some of the feelings and emotions young Black men often felt.”
The three-year programme, named ‘Young Black Men and Mental Health’, will see a holistic approach to addressing mental health issues among young Black males in Islington, with the aims of improving personal mental health and wellbeing, aspirations and life opportunities, while reducing exclusions.
Charlotte Harris, Managing Director at Raw London, said: “We’re so proud to partner with Islington Council and NHS to deliver a film that challenges perceptions in this way. We’re especially pleased to have worked closely together to involve real people and reflect real experiences of men in the Islington area throughout our production process.”
Islington Council’s Director – Transformation, Charisse Monero, said: “The team at Raw London took huge amounts of care to ensure authenticity was built at every stage – from the initial strategy and concept right through to production. Not only is the final result absolutely stunning, but every detail is designed to resonate with our intended audience – and we couldn’t be happier.”.
(1) Source: Islington Council & NHS
(2) Source: Raw London qualitative research sessions in partnership with Islington Council and NHS
Raw London is a multi-award winning strategy and creative agency, driving social impact through insight-led campaigns.
Since 2006, they’ve been working with brands, charities and global NGOs to further social and environmental progress across human rights, disability, LGBTQ+, healthcare, mental health and more.
In that time, they’ve won more than 60 awards for effective brand communication and purpose-led marketing, including the The Drum Social Purpose Awards, The European Lovie Awards, EVCOM Industry Awards and the Charity Times Awards.