With New PSAs, Tarana Burke Seeks to Build the Next Chapters of #MeToo’s Future

In October 2017, actor Alyssa Milano’s use of #MeToo on Twitter to draw attention to sexual assault and harassment took the movement, started by activist Tarana Burke in 2006, into the wider public consciousness. While the sheer volume of activity was a positive in many ways, much of the discussion and news focused on the accused—particularly producer Harvey Weinstein—as opposed to the experiences of the victims and the effects on their own lives. “The [#MeToo] hashtag was a mechanism for people to understand what the movement was, and it was propelled by these famous women who were brave enough to tell their stories,” said Burke, founder and chief strategist at Girls for Gender Equity and founder of the #MeToo movement. “What brought it to our attention was Hollywood, but the broader mission and vision, [and] especially the needs of [survivors], have been misrepresented.” Last month, four powerful PSAs created by Deutsch Los Angeles, with the help of Burke and her team, were launched to put the spotlight back on the core mission of the movement: to hear the stories of those affected and offer support. The animated films debuted privately with HBO at the Sundance Film Festival and featured the testimonies of actor Terry Crews, Emily Waters, Daniela Contreras and an anonymous survivor. While the words and creative execution are undoubtedly powerful, to Burke, the most crucial element in each is intersectionality. Each person highlighted in the PSA series was chosen to illustrate more nuance in the discussion of sexual violence. Burke says that Crews “represents an adult male who was sexually assaulted and came forward. But he also represents a bystander and an ally … and we like to talk about how men can be allies and be helpful, but that framing doesn’t acknowledge that men are survivors as well. What he did [in speaking out] was brave and put him in a vulnerable position, because he felt such empathy for women.” [kickout id="1"] Waters, according to Burke, goes back to #MeToo's roots. “Our work started with black and brown girls,” she said. “It was important to have Emily’s story not just because she’s a young black girl, but [because] her story talks about the intersection of intimate partner and sexual violence.” [kickout id="2"] The story of Contreras, who speaks Spanish, focuses on the issue of immigration and how sexual violence can impact people seeking a new life in the United States. “We don’t look at the faces of immigrants and the layers of challenges they ensure coming to this country where they don’t speak the language and are just trying to survive,” noted Burke. [kickout id="3"] Finally, the PSA featuring an anonymous story puts the spotlight on male survivors. “There’s just too little conversation about men as survivors of childhood sexual abuse,” said Burke. “Having a queer black man talk candidly about his experiences was hard, to say the least. But [his story is] so important—and we’ve received a lot of feedback [on this video].” [kickout id="4"] Deutsch decided that animation would make a more meaningful impact than typical first-person, on-camera PSAs. Indeed, when watching each ad, the voices and animation don’t crash into each other, and the stories (and requisite hope in each) are not lost. “Creatively, it’s genius,” said Burke. “We’re used to solemn-looking [PSAs], but you hear the voices … every inflection … and you can feel the emotion. You get more connected to what they’re saying because they’re not looking in your face.” But, more importantly, Burke feels that Deutsch really understood the mission of the ads after she spoke at the agency and received feedback from people in attendance, especially Deutsch group account director Montse Barrena, who sought out Burke after her talk to share how much it meant to her and the agency. "This was an incredibly rewarding project for me," said Barrena. "With much of the focus of #MeToo re-directed to the scandals affecting the uncertain futures of the powerful perpetrators, our goal for these PSAs was to highlight survivors whose stories aren’t typically heard." “We’ve had people offer us pro bono services, or they said that they wanted to be involved in some way,” added Burke. “I’ve had so many people ask, in the last two years, how they could be helpful. Deutsch was tuned in, thoughtful, careful and they really listened. They were fully committed.” Burke said this is a vital reset for the #MeToo Movement, ensuring it doesn’t mushroom into an unproductive space. “What we’ve made for the last year is not sustainable,” said Burke. “You can’t have a long-term movement that is based on naming and shaming, or based on calling out individuals and not talking about the systems that are in place that allow those people to behave the way they do or the lives affected by the violence.” In the next phase of a massive, historical global moment, Burke wants to focus on what matters most: supporting survivors. “The person who controls the narrative controls the work and the resources, so it’s important for us to have a hold on what the narrative is,” she said. CREDITS: Client: Girls for Gender Equity Founder/Chief Strategist (Girls for Gender Equity): Tarana Burke Managing Partner, Communication + Engagement (Blackbird): Mervyn Marcano Deutsch L.A. Chief Creative Officer, North America: Pete Favat EVP, Executive Creative Director + Art Director: Jorge Calleja EVP, Head of Design: Adhemas Batista Creative Director: Carmen Love Copywriter: Chelsea Curry Art Director: Katie Dittman Account Planning Head of Strategy: Kelsey Hodgkin Production SVP, Executive Producer: Mary Ellen Duggan Senior Integrated Producer: Jesse Pugh Ferguson Business Affairs/Traffic: SVP, Director of Integrated Business Affairs: Gabriela Farias SVP, Director of Traffic Operations Carie Bonillo Senior Integrated Business Affairs: Saeyoung Kim Account Management: EVP, Group Account Director: Montse Barrena VP, Director of Experience: Acacia May Account Supervisor: Nissa Gutierrez PR VP, Director of Communications: Mikaela Liboro PR Manager: Karina Brennan Audio Record / Mix Steelhead Audio Engineer: Cayce Sylvester Managing Director: Ted Markovic Executive Producer: Adam Becht Audio Director: Terry Miglin Producer: Patrick Lewis 740 Sound Mixer: Chris Pinkston Executive Producer: Scott Ganary Producer: Jeff Martin Assistant Mixer: Will Pugh Lime Studios Mix Engineer: Tom Paolantonio, Matt Miller Assistant Mixer: Lisa Mermelstein Executive Producer: Susie Boyajan Producer: Kayla Phungglan Anthem - Psyop Director/Designer: Pedro Lavin Animation Director/Designer: Marika Cowan Animator: Mayukh Goswami Compositor: Sean Wehrli Executive Producer: Lydia Holness Producer: Jodi Kraushar, Nyenye Kitchings Daniela: Hornet Emily Waters: Elastic Studios Design Studio: Elastic Creative Supervision: Heidi Berg, Lisa Bolan Type Designer: Benjamin Woodlock Animators: Steven Biggert, Earl Burnley, Alex Silver Cel Animation: Michael Relth, Jahmad Rollins Editor: Rachel Fowler Senior Producer: Paul Makowski Head of Production: Kate Berry Executive Producer: Luke Colson Managing Director: Jennifer Sofio Hall Anonymous & Terry Crews: We Are Royale Executive Creative Director, Partner: Brien Holman Executive Director Brand Partnerships, Partner: Jayson Whitmore Managing Director, Partner: Jen Lucero Senior Art Director: Juliet Park Art Director: Heather-Lynn Aquino Executive Producer: Heather-Lynn Aquino Executive Producer: Rhys Demery Head of Production: Eric Zapakin Design Team: Juliet Park, Heather-Lynn Aquino, Yoyo Wang, Eleena Bakrie, Arthur Metcalf, Matty Deans Animation Team: Hyungsoon Joo, Matty Deans, Arthur Metcalf, Zak Tietjen Music Company: duotone audio group Managing Director: David Leinheardt Executive Producer: Ross Hopman Producer: Gio Lobato Sound Design: duotone audio post Sound Designer: Juan Aboites & Andy Green Executive Producer, Audio Post: Greg Tiefenbrun Musicology: Dan Dixon

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

With New PSAs, Tarana Burke Seeks to Build the Next Chapters of #MeToo’s Future

Work from Deutsch puts focus back on survivors

Doug Zanger

About

Subscriptions

Events

Publications

WORK SMARTER - LEARN, GROW AND BE INSPIRED.

Subscribe today!

Doug Zanger