Bestads Best TV/Film of the Week: Save the Children’s ‘La Fiesta’ via FCB Newlink, Mexico
Each week Bestads showcases standout global advertising work as reviewed by an esteemed international creative director or team. This week’s film of the week is Save the Children’s ‘La Fiesta’ via FCB Newlink, Mexico.
The film was selected by this week’s guest judge Jake Barrow, Chief Creative Officer, VML Czechia.
“I have the attention span of a Labrador puppy, but this 5-minute film held my attention for its entire length, even on multiple watches,” says Barrow. “With an issue like this, it would have been easy to default to bashing people over the head with a provocative idea, but this was careful and subtle in its power.
“What I loved most was the pace. The team allowed the film to breathe, and that’s what gave it tension. The craft was delicate in providing clues as to what was happening, which were appreciated even more on the second and third viewing.
“Everything added up to a powerful rug-pull at the end and a beautiful line of copy that gave me a new perspective on the issue. Storytelling perfection that hooked me from the opening shot.”
In the context of the International Day of the Girl Child, Save the Children presents Itzel’s Feast, a film directed by German Tejada through Whisky Film, that seeks to highlight one of the most serious and normalized problems in Mexico: child marriage. According to Save the Children figures, more than 313,000 girls, boys, and adolescents between the ages of 12 and 17 in Mexico are married or in early unions. Seventy-six percent are girls, and in most cases, they are married to men at least six years older than them. Although child marriage has been prohibited by law since 2019, informal unions and religious rituals continue to deprive thousands of girls of their right to decide about their lives, their bodies, and their future.
The campaign is based on a compelling insight: if you’re part of the party, you’re part of the crime. Through Itzel’s story, the production directly addresses the viewer, with an intimate and relatable tone, and opens a space for reflection on an issue that remains invisible in much of society.
Click here to read Jake’s full review.
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