The push, devised by Bates-Asia, focuses on synthetic drugs such as methamphetamine, ketamine and Ecstasy. According to 2006 statistics from the local drug enforcement agency, 75 per cent of new abusers used synthetic drugs and these were mostly young ethnic-Chinese men.
The campaign’s message - ‘Drugs. If you play, you pay’ - stresses the reality of getting into trouble for drug-related offences to these abusers, said Dr Loo Choon Yong, chairman of NCADA.
“Synthetic drugs are the most commonly abused drugs among young Singaporeans and we hope to reduce the number of new entrants on to the drug scene. We believe that this year’s campaign will effectively deliver NCADA’s anti-drug message to youngsters in a language and sub-culture that they identify with,” he said.
Drawing inspiration from street artists Banksy, Kaws and Shepard Fairey, Bates decided to “speak to them on their own terms”, according to Edward Panks, the agency’s business director.
The agency, led by outgoing ECD Robert Gaxiola, collaborated with eight youth-oriented homegrown brands to reach out to the target audience. These include popular nightspot Ministry of Sound, fashion brands Collage and Flesh Imp, and jewellery chain Perlini’s Silver.
“Using the talents of a contemporary street artist, we overlaid aspirational images of real advertising with the very stark message of prison. By disrupting the glamour of such imagery in this surprising and unexpected way, we convey the message that drugs can potentially take away everything you have,” explained Panks.
For example, a female model posing on the street in an ad from Collage is transformed into a woman being arrested by the police. Ministry of Sound’s ad featuring a young partygoer decked out in jewellery became a jailbird behind bars.
Said Panks of the intended effect: “Hopefully, we can convince those abusing drugs to stop. And for those thinking of experimenting, our message is that it’s really not worth it.”
The campaign is running until February 2008 and also uses outdoor and ambient.
The campaign’s message - ‘Drugs. If you play, you pay’ - stresses the reality of getting into trouble for drug-related offences to these abusers, said Dr Loo Choon Yong, chairman of NCADA.
“Synthetic drugs are the most commonly abused drugs among young Singaporeans and we hope to reduce the number of new entrants on to the drug scene. We believe that this year’s campaign will effectively deliver NCADA’s anti-drug message to youngsters in a language and sub-culture that they identify with,” he said.
Drawing inspiration from street artists Banksy, Kaws and Shepard Fairey, Bates decided to “speak to them on their own terms”, according to Edward Panks, the agency’s business director.
The agency, led by outgoing ECD Robert Gaxiola, collaborated with eight youth-oriented homegrown brands to reach out to the target audience. These include popular nightspot Ministry of Sound, fashion brands Collage and Flesh Imp, and jewellery chain Perlini’s Silver.
“Using the talents of a contemporary street artist, we overlaid aspirational images of real advertising with the very stark message of prison. By disrupting the glamour of such imagery in this surprising and unexpected way, we convey the message that drugs can potentially take away everything you have,” explained Panks.
For example, a female model posing on the street in an ad from Collage is transformed into a woman being arrested by the police. Ministry of Sound’s ad featuring a young partygoer decked out in jewellery became a jailbird behind bars.
Said Panks of the intended effect: “Hopefully, we can convince those abusing drugs to stop. And for those thinking of experimenting, our message is that it’s really not worth it.”
The campaign is running until February 2008 and also uses outdoor and ambient.
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