CASE STUDY · MERCK FOR MOTHERS
PUSH.
A three-minute film that made maternal mortality impossible to ignore, and became the most-viewed video in Merck’s history.
- CLIENT
- Merck for Mothers
- OUR ROLE
- Campaign
- WE MADE
- Film
- THE GOAL
- Make maternal mortality impossible to ignore.
- IN COLLABORATION WITH
- Matter Unlimited
- CREATIVE DIRECTORS
- Ahmer Kalam, Shabazz Larkin
- DIRECTOR
- Spencer Creigh, Whitelist
- RELEASED
- March 2017, International Women’s Day
THE CHALLENGE
800
MOTHERS.
EVERY DAY.
In 2017, nearly 800 women died every day from complications of pregnancy and childbirth.
Merck for Mothers, Merck’s 10-year, $500 million initiative to end maternal mortality, needed the world to feel that number. The launch had to raise awareness, establish Merck for Mothers as a leader on the issue and bring new partners to the cause.
THE IDEA
ONE WORD.
TWO MEANINGS.
Push is what every mother does to bring a child into the world.
We turned it into a call to action for everyone else, under the platform All for Mothers:
“Let’s PUSH until all maternal mortality is a thing of the past.”
THE FILM
THREE
MOTHERS.
The film follows three pregnant women through nine months. Two give birth to healthy babies. The third does not survive.
“It takes a lot to be a mother. For some, it takes their lives.”
THE LAUNCH
DAVOS
TO EVERYWHERE.
PUSH premiered privately at Davos in 2017, then to Merck’s employees and partners, then publicly on International Women’s Day.
Partners including the Gates Foundation, Every Mother Counts, Heidi Murkoff and Matt Logelin shared it, with native placements on Tastemade, Real Simple and Thought Catalog.
2.5M
people watched PUSH across platforms, making it the most-viewed video in Merck’s history.
SOURCE: SHORTY SOCIAL GOOD AWARDS ENTRY
- 42M
- Media impressions in the first two weeks.
- 1 HOUR
- To pass Merck’s previous video-views benchmark.
- 5 DAYS
- Paid support stopped early because views beat expectations.
- 2 LIONS + A CLIO
- Recognized at Cannes Lions and the Clio Awards.
RECOGNITION
AWARDED.
Silver Clio, Film Technique: Direction, 2017. Cannes Lions 2017: Silver Lion, Film Craft (Cinematography), and Bronze Lion, Pharma.