Crowdfunding Campaigns | Committee Against Torture
Every 10th adult Russian citizen has been subjected to torture. In three years, my team has launched three projects for the NGO, the Committee Against Torture, addressing police brutality in Russia. These projects were the first to tackle this topic for a large audience in the country, were widely discussed in the media and on social networks, and, most importantly, helped the Committee start receiving regular donations to support torture victims. Currently, the organization is labelled a foreign agent by Russian authorities.
No Torture
The victims of torture often go unnoticed, and even the Criminal Code does not have a separate article on torture. An integrated campaign addressing this significant issue included a song about police brutality, a music video featuring real victims of torture, and a special project supported by major independent media outlets in the country.
We published “invisible articles” about torture on numerous independent media outlets. Initially appearing as blank pages on these websites, highlighting the text made the problem visible, allowing readers to access articles on torture. This simple trick aimed to emphasize the main idea that while the Russian government maintains the opinion that torture does not exist, in reality, real victims are simply overlooked.
The campaign resulted in over 110 articles in the media, more than 8,500 social media mentions, over 2 million video views across various platforms, and reached a total project coverage of over 100 million people.
My role: Idea, Creative Director.
Awards: Silver Mercury grand prix(1) gold(2) silver(1) Red Apple Festival gold(6) silver(2) Art Directors Club of Russia gold(1) silver(2) White Square grand prix(1) gold(4) silver(3) bronze(2) E+ gold(1) bronze(1)
Russian Yoga School
The integrated crowdfunding campaign highlighted the paradox of torture methods being given innocent names like Swallow, Baby Elephant, and Songbird by Russian law enforcers. Within 10 days, the Committee Against Torture received enough pledged monthly donations to cover the medical support for torture victims on a monthly basis.
You can see all other videos from the projects at this link.
My role: Idea, Creative Director, Writer.
Awards: Cannes Lions shortlist(1) Epica Awards bronze(1) Art Directors Club of Europe gold(1) bronze(1) Art Directors Club of Russia gold(1) silver(1) White Square grand prix(1) gold(5) silver(3) bronze(1) Big Picture Festival gold(1) silver(1) G8 gold(2) AdBlack Sea silver(1) bronze(1) MIXX Awards grand prix(1) gold(2) silver(1) Red Apple Festival gold(1) silver(2)
Police Cartoons
3 out of 4 people who reported being tortured by security forces were denied criminal proceedings. This is because the authorities prefer to trust the words of police officers rather than their victims. The video is based on absurd statements made by actual police officers, attempting to 'explain' the injuries found on torture victims. These statements are so ridiculous that we did not alter them in any way; we simply copied and pasted them from official statements and visualized them with cartoons to emphasize their absurdity. All the individuals mentioned in the video are actual victims of torture.
The project has reached over 2 million viewers across various social networks and has been covered by multiple Russian media outlets and prominent bloggers. Since the video was released, the number of donations has increased by 57%.
My role: Idea, Creative Director, Writer.
Awards: Art Directors Club of Europe gold(3) silver(1) bronze(1) Silver Mercury gold(1) bronze(1) White Square gold(3) silver(1) bronze(1) Art Directors Club of Russia gold(3) Big Picture Festival silver(1) Effie Awards gold(1) Unknown Film Festival gold(1) G8 gold(3) Red Apple Festival gold(1) silver(4) bronze(1)