Pass It On - European Elections 2024

Background Casting challenge: Casting in 27 countries and in 27 languages for a final cast of 54 grandparents and grandchildren from every EU member state. The participants, up to the age of 94, were to embark on a three-day journey to meet their peers and take part in the "Pass It On"-project. Their life stories, as told to their grandchildren, were used in the go-to-vote campaign for the European Parliament. The scale and challenges of the casting were massive, but the final result is so harmonic and life-affirming that viewers won't ever fathom the tour de force of the casting-process. Creative Idea The film is created to remind Europeans that democracy is a shared responsibility, but also to draw parallels to the crises that democracy and the world are facing today. These are politically sensitive topics that the European Parliament, of course, cannot address directly. Instead, we chose to tell a story about relationships between people from different nations – and most importantly – from different generations, and dove into our collective past, present, and future through the intimate space between grandparents and their grandchildren. As a viewer we become a secondary recipient of the advice that the grand-parents pass on to the next generation. It can be difficult to see the value of democracy in the short term, but over the course of a lifetime, its significance becomes clear. And the idea was to pass on that insight – "Pass it on." Insights & Strategy The European Elections 2024 were to be held in the context of two wars, a rise of political extremes and authoritarianism, and a global decline in freedom rights and democracy. And the European Parliament needed to take these sensitive subjects into account – without being political in any way – and they needed to move people to vote, no matter their political beliefs. The campaign is built on the insight, that democracy is a collective responsibility - not towards a political idea or a specific cause - but towards each other. And collective responsibilities are not a burden to bear. We just need to be reminded of who we do it for. To remind Europeans, we tapped into our collective past, present, and future through the intimate space between grandparents and grandchildren - and as a viewer we become a secondary recipient of the advice that the grand-parents pass on to the next generation. Execution The casting process became research in itself. Participants from every state were asked which historical event had the biggest impact on their country and their own personal life. And the shoot became a democratic European project, where we gathered elders and grandchildren from all 27 EU member states, so they could participate in the Pass-It-On-project together. Cast also participated in a Brussels press-conference and some participated in press interviews in their home states. The short-form documentary, Pass It On, captured hearts all over Europe. The campaign ran paid on digital media, and earned free media space thanks to the idea, stories, and charismatic cast. It was shown at film festials (including Cannes Film Festival), by hundreds of national broadcasters and almost a thousand cinemas. Results MEDIA IMPACT The film had a significant organic reach and was showcased at the Cannes Film Festival (as well as several other European film festivals). It was screened in 898 European cinemas (with over 15 million guests) and broadcast by 397 national broadcasters (with an estimated media value of €33.6M+). All of this was earned media. The online film campaign was highly successful: • 339 million completed(!) views • An impressive 64% view-through rate – 2 out of 3 viewers watched it to the end • 22,137 earned tv broadcasts (by 397 national broadcasters) • 1,051 published articles about the campaign • +10,000 multipliers and organizations engaged • 1.06 billion impressions BEHAVIORAL IMPACT The behavioral effects of the campaign were measured by Verian in the EU’s Post Election Survey, based on 26,349 qualitative interviews, with results weighted according to each country’s population. • 48% discussed the campaign with family and friends • 29% stated that the campaign influenced their decision to vote • 45% higher voter turnout among those who recalled the campaign (a remarkable 20-percentage-point increase)