Six Of The Most Powerful PSAs Ever Produced.

Some of these are brutal to watch. Which is the point.

I don’t usually cover PSA/nonprofit ads because they’re easier to do good work for than for-profit brand ads, and because much of it is disingenuously and disgustingly created just to win fucking awards. Great PSA work, however, is not so easy. To create real emotion, and get real emotional response, is not so easy.

1. Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children

The ISPCC literally hasn’t pulled any punches with their advertising. It’s shocking. And that’s the way this type of advertising should be. Because it will never be as shocking as the abuse that many adults commit on children.

This is the most disturbing ad of the campaign. (See two more ads here.) It you’re not moved by this ad, God fucking help you. Listen to the boy (who deserved an Oscar®, or something):

“I can’t wait til I grow up. And have the right to be happy. To be kept safe, to be kept warm. To feel love, to be listened to, to be heard. To never ever ever cower, tremble, or shake. Or have my innocence pushed or kicked or screamed away. I’ll fight for the rights of children like me who don’t have a chance. (pause) I can’t wait until I grow up”.

This was not done to win awards. From 2011. Ad agency: Ogilvy, Dublin.

Five more moving PSA ads below.

ASA (France)

From 2009 for the Association France Alzheimer.

On-screen copy: FORTUNATELY, THEY WON’T REMEMBER.

There have been many, many Alzheimer/Dementia PSAs made in the last 25 years. This is far-and-away the most moving, depressing one of the lot. Christ.

Ad agency: Saatchi & Saatchi, Paris.

3. SCOTTISH FIRE AND RESCUE SERVICE (Scotland)

It’s simply a spot advising you to get a smoke alarm. And the simple idea and simple execution of a boy holding his breath for 30 seconds or so is, well, brilliant. LESS IS MORE, ad fuckers. Ad agency: The Union, UK. Director: Ben Craig.

4. PRO-MASTURBATION PSA (1970s)

OK, a little levity here. It’s from a 1975 film: “The ABCs of Sex Education for Trainables” (mentally-impaired teens). It’s almost perfect:

• The non-judgmental acoustic guitar music.

• The "make love not war" sign on Ricky's door.

• Mom being so kind, and interested on how good it felt.

• Ricky's facial expression, especially during the slow zoom-in ending.

• I wonder who Ricky was thinking about? Farrah Fawcett? Lee Majors? The school nurse?

Ricky, don't lose that hard-on.

5. truth

Again, a shit-ton tobacco PSAs out there, see: this awful one via Austria. Here, truth (the anti-tobacco nonprofit) did a literal die-in in front of a Big Tobacco building (not sure where). “Tobacco kills 1200 people a day”. They committed to the bit by numbering every die-in participant. It hits the point, literally, hard.

6. SUSSEX SAFER ROADS PARTNERSHIP (England)

The spot won YouTube’s inaugural Ad Of The Year award in 2010.

We’ve seen scores of seat-belt ads with real car crashes. This execution, featuring the driver’s wife’s and daughter’s interlocking arms forming seat-belts is mesmerizing. The ad beat out Old Spice's "The man you man could smell like" and more than 170 other entries. The video only won a Bronze Lion at Cannes, because it wasn't created by a hot “creative" ad shop or a big behemoth ad group.

Creator: Alexander Commercials.