Mother's ‘Belong’ for Shift.ms

Mother has created a second short film for web-based charity Shift.ms. The film, ‘Belong’, dramatises the early stages of learning to live with multiple sclerosis (MS). It follows on from the short film ‘Gallop’ that was released earlier this year portraying the emotional journey of someone coming to grips with the early stages of diagnosis of MS through the prism of a love affair.

 

‘Belong’ features Dave and Karen, the characters from ‘Gallop’, in conversation with others with MS exploring how different people cope with the illness. The film takes place in a pub where an MS support group chat about how being diagnosed with MS has changed their lives and how they’re living with the condition.

 

The film was shot in 360 degrees so that the viewer feels part of the conversation, and it is displayed on the Shift.ms website surrounded by web links. As the film plays and different topics are broached, links on the Shift.ms website to those topic areas become active. Viewers clicking on these will find further insights into the subject and have the chance to participate in real conversations that are happening in the Shift.ms forums about that particular issue.

 

BAFTA-nominated director Michael Pearce directs ‘Belong’, and the production of the film has been managed by BOSH, Mother’s in-house production arm. The film can be viewed on the Shift.ms website: http://shift.ms/belong/

 

The response to the first film was overwhelmingly positive, with members of the Shift.ms community saying they found it moving and uplifting, and that it helped them explain MS to their families. The 10-minute spot has had more than 30,000 views on YouTube, making it one of the most watched films in its category.

 

Sophie Spence from Mother, said: “We were really touched by the response we had to the first film, with people in the MS community saying ‘Gallop’ hit the right note of realism without being overly pessimistic. Hopefully ‘Belong’ will get it right again, and help get people talking about MS and understanding it a bit better.”

 

This film has been supported by an unrestricted grant from Novartis Pharmaceuticals UK Limited.

 

Credits

Creative Agency: Mother

Art Director: Mother

Copywriter: Mother

Planner: Mother

Agency Producer: Mother

Director: Michael Pearce

Production Company: BOSH

Producer: Elizabeth Trustman and Mother

Editor: Fabian Peters @BOSH

Post Production: BOSH

Audio Post-Production: BOSH

Sound Design: Joel Cad