Brazil has 1388 sexual assault cases per day. That’s almost one per minute. The situation was so staggering that we needed more than a campaign. We needed a law. The briefing was to make a Brazilian law known to the public, but the challenge is that laws are just numbers. They lack branding. So, our goal was to brand the law that guarantees free medical assistance to assault victims in a way that’s memorable and easy to sell.

When analyzing what The Next Minute Scene achieved, two things should be taken in consideration regarding the social climate in Brazil: the country has 1388 sexual assault cases per day; and soap operas are still the #1 entertainment program of choice of the majority of Brazilians. By merging these two cultural facts, we came up with The Next Minute Scene. After a sexual assault scene aired on the soap opera, an ad came right after it with the same actress that shot the scene and she warned women about the Next Minute Law: a law that guarantees free medical assistance anywhere after an assault takes place.

On a soap opera, whenever a fictional sexual assault happened on an episode, the same actress that shot the scene came right after on our ad, using it as an instructional tool to inform potential victims about the exact procedure if it happens to you. The Next Minute Scene was a way to blend fiction and entertainment as to educate women everywhere about their rights to free medical assistance in case of assault, anywhere in the country.

Our strategy was to use soap operas, still to this day the most watched entertainment format in Brazil, to spread awareness about The Next Minute Law, because they talk to a broad target: women of all ages, colors and beliefs, permeating the vast majority of the population. It proved extremely effective, as the law quickly became news through the country.

The implementation was done in partnership with the biggest network in Brazil, and we focused on executions that could be done seamlessly with their soap opera contents. The project took a month to put together. We did 3 ads, each with a different actress, to follow 3 sexual assault scenes from 3 different soap operas. They all aired to the whole country.

Results for the 360 campaign are 986 million media impressions

35% lift in ad recall

Cover of magazines

Talk shows

Presented in UN Women NY

On health: 80% increase access to contraceptive pills and PEP (HIV cocktail)

On security: 10 new women’s police stations in Sao Paulo working 24/7. 30 new stations throughout the country to 2021.