Eyes speak out in Pegavision’s eye-controlled online film, via J. Walter Thompson Taipei
More than half of women in Taiwan work outside the home and the nation elected its first female president this year. Yet many Taiwanese women still feel constrained by traditional views of marriage and of their roles as wives and mothers.
J. Walter Thompson Taipei and Pegavision, a leading maker of contact lenses, turned this dichotomy into an online film, “For eyes to speak out,” that encourages women to chart their own course, and encourage society to see women in a different light – as confident, independent women who are shedding societal stereotypes of how they should be or behave.
In what is the world’s first interactive website with eye control, viewers were asked to switch on the cameras on their computers or laptops before the film starts. The film shows a young woman going about her daily life. A voice-over lists stereotypical statements on womanhood, such as “All girls need to be gentle” and “Marriage equals happiness” as the woman is shown donning a long-haired wig and demurely draping a shawl around herself.
At the end, a viewer might be provoked into an eye roll. That eye roll – sensed by the camera – is all it takes to get the reel playing in reverse. The music quickens, she sheds the shawl and the long hair and the voiceover in reverse turns the statements on their heads.
The brand campaign drew deeply from recent global research by J. Walter Thompson as part of its “Female Tribes” project. The survey found that 84 percent of Taiwanese women agreed “there’s never been a better time to be a woman” and 89 percent agreed with the statement “femininity is not a weakness, it’s a strength.”
Yet 89 percent said they wished they’d seen more female role models as inspiration while growing up and 92 percent said women should have a louder voice when it comes to cultural influence. What’s more, 61% of Taiwanese respondents worry about how motherhood will affect them, financially, and 60% say that if they had to, they would delay getting married or having kids to focus on their career. Meanwhile, 92% say they feel sexually empowered – the highest in all our global markets.
“Pegavision’s brand idea is “Be Unique”. The campaign message, which encourages women to shed stereotypes and chart their own path, aims to elevate that brand idea and connect with the country’s strong, independent female consumers,” says Chang I-Fei, Executive Creative Director of J. Walter Thompson Taipei.
Six different trail packs for the brand’s disposable contacts, meanwhile, used hashtags instead of traditional taglines to make provocative statements. “I dispose daily” declares one, followed by the hashtag “#OneNightStands”. “Debauchery is better than being pretentious”, reads the rest of the copy. “I wear #Imperfection. My beauty is not standardized”, reads a different pack. “I choose #Gamophobia. Fear that loves ides on a piece of paper,” says another. The copy was also used to create a set of GIFs that users can share.
2 Comments
Sounds like a case study film built to win an award.
If I was told that i had to turn on my webcam to watch a video, I’d be outta there
instantly. So it falls at the first hurdle.
Stil, it doesn’t cause offence by mocking refugees…and it seems to work….so it won’t cause any outrage.
Good example of how todays digital creatives are obsessed with new technology and not how consumers behave. Anything to be able to say world’s first bla bla.
whoever sits through this entire video must have the patience of a saint….and we know consumers don’t.
maybe the award judges will be more forgiving.