The campaign includes a short sitcom that aims to help men recognize and act on casual misogyny in the workplace and in their social lives.
Fck The Cupcakes (FTC), an industry movement established by Innocean Australia’s CEO Jasmine Bedir in 2021 to help highlight and address the issue of gender inequality, has launched a campaign called ‘Be the Change’.
Created by Innocean Australia, with PR from Edelman and media from Hearts & Sciences, the campaign is designed to motivate men to help women drive change.
As part of the initiative, the campaign includes a three-minute film with a cringe-worthy boss who displays blatant attitudes of sexism and misogynywho which is reminiscent of the popular TV series The Office.
Check it out – and try not to punch your screen.
According to a report published earlier this year in The Global Citizen, Australian men hold some of the most misogynistic views in the Western world, with the cohort ranking well above the global average in a research study from Ipsos and the Global Institute for Women’s Leadership (GIWL).
This is reinforced by a shEqual Advertising Equality report that found men were disengaged from the subject, with more than half (54%) believing that gender equality is already prioritized, while only 29% of women agreed.
“The truth is many men have disengaged from the conversation,” said Rod Prosser, chief sales officer, Paramount Australia & New Zealand (ANZ).
“For the vast majority of men, they do not relate to the stories of extreme sexual assault, unfair dismissal or domestic violence so often covered in mainstream media. We have no lived experience of what the average woman goes through in their daily workday, nor our unconscious contribution to it.”
The ‘Be the Change’ campaign was created to help shift the gender conversation from being a women’s issue to one that aims to engage men.
“If the election has taught us anything, women do not want men to stand by in the struggle for equality,” said Bedir.
“But we also acknowledge that many men want to help but don’t know how – so we have created a safe space for men to learn the tools and giving permission to contribute to the fight for gender equality 365 days a year.”
The multi-channel initiative has support from the production industry and media partners, including Paramount Australia & New Zealand, JCDecaux, ARN, yStop, Hoyts, Seven Network, Nine Entertainment, Foxtel, Nova, as well as Yahoo, SCA, oOH!media, and Val Morgan.
For more information or to get involved, visit: www.be-the-change.com.au
Credits
Client: Fck The Cupcakes
Creative Agency: Innocean Australia
CEO: Jasmin Bedir
ECD: Wesley Hawes
CDs: Effie Kacopieros, Damon Porter, V. Wassim Kanaan
Copywriters: Laura Parker, Charlotte Berry
Account Management: Carly Pelham
Strategy: Charlotte Berry, Gual Barwel
Producers: Sue Hind, Gabe Hammond, Esmé Fisher
Senior Designer: Michael Macgregor
Agency Editor: Dave Anlezark
PR: Edelman PR, Matthew Ellenby
Media: Hearts & Science, Wendy Gower
Digital/CX: Razorfish
CEO: Jason Tonelli
ECD: Vaughan Townsend
Senior Copywriter: Jacque Kennedy
UX Lead: James Winchester
Creative Designer: Madison Chan
Strategic Projects Director: Maria Galang
Production Company: Filmgraphics
Director – Scott Walker
EP/Producer – Anna Fawcett
DOP – Daniel Ardilley
Post – Vandal
Sound – Rumble
Production support:
Wellcom
Media companies/partners:
ARN
Foxtel
Hoyts
JCDecaux
Nova
oOH!media
Paramount Australia & New Zealand
SCA
Seven Network
Val Morgan
Yahoo
yStop
