ALS Canada's ads just as unsettling in print

Lowe Roche in Toronto and the ALS Society of Canada crafted one of the more emotionally wrenching TV spots of 2008: this one, with the children's song "Head and Shoulders" and the father who is inexorably ravaged over time by the disease. Now, Lowe extends the campaign to print. See three full ads here. They show ALS sufferers with disintegrating chalk maze outlines superimposed on them, stretching from the head down one of their limbs—a simple, arresting and disquieting way to illustrate ALS's slow-motion destruction of the motor neurons that allow the brain to control the body. "One by one," reads the copy, "your muscles become paralyzed, making it impossible to walk, talk, eat, and eventually, breathe. Please, help us find a cure. Visit www.als.ca to donate."

—Posted by Tim Nudd

Published on February 11, 2009 | Permalink | Comments (0)
Filed under ALS Society of Canada, Canada, Health, Lowe, Nudd, PSAs

Canadian ALS spot sets a new bar for grim

This is one emotionally jarring PSA by Lowe Roche for the ALS Society of Canada. The family images and children's song "Head and Shoulders" start out fast-paced and joyous, then somberly slow to a crawl as the spot progresses, mirroring the way the disease ravages the human body. The shot of the dad, so animated in the early scenes, struggling to walk stiffly down the stairs, his face set like a mask, is truly heartbreaking and not quickly forgotten. Sure, we're being manipulated, but whoa! That guy's shambling advance is intense! Make a donation here.

—Posted by David Gianatasio

Published on November 11, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (5)
Filed under ALS Society of Canada, Freaky, Health, Lowe, PSAs