Ink distilled from smokers' lungs conveys stop-smoking message

Client: Thai Health Promotion Foundation

Agency: BBDO Bangkok

Market: Thailand

Name of campaign: 'Message from the lungs'

Campaign scope: Gallery event, social and earned media

Details: The campaign, launched in March*, introduced "the world’s first ink made from smokers’ donated lungs". In cooperation with Chulalongkorn University, the agency extracted the black substance from donated lungs and made it into ink, then bottled and distributed this ink to demonstrate to Thai people how smoking can harm their bodies.

Campaign Asia Pacific's comments: The action is gruesome, but appropriately so considering that 142 people in Thailand die every day from smoking, according to the organisation. The agency reports that the topic has generated more than US$2.1 million worth of earned media and that more than 100,000 people have shared it on social networks. The organisation also reports that the number of participants in its stop-smoking programme has increased 500 per cent compared with last year.

CREDITS

Chief Creative Officer: Suthisak Sucharittanonta
Executive Creative Director: Anuwat Nitipanont
Art Director: Kantapon Meateekul
Chief Client Officer: Thipayachand Hasdin
Chief Planning Officer: Tutiya Disphanurat
Copywriter: Thiti Boonkerd
Account Director: Anchalee Kerdchan
Account Manager: Preeyaporn Somboonwanna

* Correction: The agency originally stated that the campaign launched last week, but later sent a correction.