Horror movie trailer drives awareness of Malaria No More
Innovative social media campaign created by Red Bee Media gathers celebrity support for Malaria No More UK.
Red Bee Media has created and produced a dramatic 90-second trailer that appears to promote a new horror film - The Hunting Moon. The “movie”, aimed at a 16-24 year old audience, features British students adventuring in Africa, whose travels turn into a dark trap as they realise they are surrounded by bloodsuckers that come to feed at night and kill in their thousands.
The trailer launched on 25th October 2010 on The Hunting Moon’s own microsite (also created by Red Bee Media) and YouTube. It was featured as an authentic new movie on entertainment web sites including Sky Movies and The Sun’s showbiz site. Celebrities including David Beckham and Andy Murray posted links on web sites, Facebook and Twitter and the “movie” was also promoted by tweets from The Gates Foundation and the Wellcome Trust.
At the end of the trailer, viewers can click to “reveal the killers” and discover that they have been watching an undercover promotion for Malaria No More UK, with mosquitoes exposed as the real bloodsuckers in Africa. Simple facts illustrate the scale of malaria, a preventable disease that kills more children under five than any other single disease and claims the life of a child in Africa every 45 seconds. Viewers are then prompted to sign up to the charity by entering a competition offering exclusive celebrity prizes.
Arabella Gilchrist, Director of Communications at Malaria No More UK, said: “We exist to end deaths from malaria in Africa by 2015, hence the need for bold, pioneering campaigns to capture imaginations and engage hearts in our mission. We are grateful to Red Bee Media who have done an impressive job, creating an authentic and exciting campaign on a shoestring budget”.
Charlie Mawer, Executive Creative Director at Red Bee Media, said. “It’s a rare and wonderful thing when we can harness our skills at creating innovative multi-platform campaigns to such a powerful cause. I remember watching a premiere of Twilight getting a hysterical reaction from a young crowd, and thought there is a genuine horror story taking place in the world today that should be getting this attention”.
