04/04/2022
The story behind the ‘I’m not fine’ Campaign:
This project entailed creating an empathy lead campaign, dedicated to social change. We found that there is an existing “I’m fine” culture that uses this as a scripted/automatic response when asked how they are. Initially, we wanted to target mental health, combatting this culture, but kept hitting dead ends. Feeling so downcast and discouraged, we vented to our lecturers and told them how we couldn’t seem to find a creative direction without being repetitious. They then asked, “Well, what would you like to hear when you’re feeling this way?” We looked at each other and said, “It would be nice if someone told us that it's fine. That it’s okay to struggle and that we don’t always have to be happy, and have our crap together.” They said, “That’s it. That’s your concept.” And that’s how this campaign was born.
‘I’m not fine’ is aimed at young adults who constantly put up a happy façade and pretend that they have the ‘perfect life.’ We wanted to let people know that it’s fine to not be fine, that it’s okay to have bad days and that happiness isn’t compulsory.
The name of this campaign is, ‘I’m not fine,’ with the slogan being, ‘It’s fine that I’m not fine.’ The reason is to let people feel comfortable with saying that they are not fine, encouraging this response, as opposed to the scripted response of, “I’m fine.” It is hoped to stir a self-evaluation within the viewer, when seeing ‘I’m not fine,’ causing them to think about how they truly feel, instead of what they portray to the world.
The style guide mood isn’t anything in particular. It’s not meant to make a person feel a specific type of emotion (happy/sad), but is meant to evoke peace.
Activation to follow.
Thanks for reading!
Soli Deo Gloria 🤍
