The Changing Face

We all know that HIV is a very serious disease. That’s the message Abbott Molecular wished to convey, and it took just the right talent to bring it to life.

Our client, Hamilton Communications, requested a mix of age, gender and race to show that HIV is mutating and showing up in new strains in an ever changing demographic. After two solid days of casting, twelve talents were chosen from a pool of nearly 300.   We weren’t just looking for the right face. We needed models who could act. They would have to portray the “every person” this disease can strike and be able to show confidence and concern at the same time.

When shooting people, I often feel like a “stand-up” (with a camera instead of a microphone). Although we usually have a script to follow, we always end up doing Improv, since creativity is never really scripted.  Most ads show happy, smiling people, but this product was different.  We had to show the severity of the disease while also conveying a sense of hope.  They were to represent portraits of HIV-1 patients, with subtypes superimposed on their faces. This was to depict the human toll HIV-1 is taking today. We wanted our lighting to have a black and white, chiaroscuro effect in color, to work well with our models emotions and not limit the placement of our letters. Each talent performed wonderfully and the shoot was a success. (But I have to admit; it’s a real challenge to teach pathos to a year old baby!)

The creative team of Joe D’Adamo, Rob Merk and Shari Andersson from Hamilton Communications crafted the idea behind this campaign. The optimism portrayed in the photos, along with the floating of the letters across the faces of the models, combined to deliver a powerful, positive message.

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