Gruen Transfer – The Pitch

Wunderman Sydney was invited to participate in The Pitch segment of ABC's hit TV show The Gruen Transfer. Our brief was to convince the Australian public to allow refugees arriving by boat into the country. Following a Federal election in which both major parties promised to 'stop the boats', Gruen host Wil Anderson chose this topic for episode 11 which aired on ABC1 on Wednesday 22 September.



While both parties talked about stopping the boats, neither gave a single reason as to why they should be stopped. The reason Australians give for not letting 'boat people' in are usually along the lines of 'job stealing', 'terrorism', and the more general 'not welcome'. It's a politically-charged issue that hides fear and racism behind a distorted version of national patriotism.

Here's some facts about refugees who arrive in Australia by boat:
• Only 2,000 asylum seekers arrive in Australia by boat in 2009, compared to the 50,000 people who illegally over-stay their visas each year.
• 95% of asylum seekers arrive in Australia by plane.
• 42 million people worldwide were displaced in 2008.
• 839,000 people applied for asylum somewhere around the world in 2008. Only 0.57% of these were in Australia.
• In a list of 71 countries that accept refugees, Australia is 32nd. Behind Kazakhstan and Djibouti.

Special thanks to those who donated their time and skills to make this happen

Credits:
Creative Director: Matt Batten
Copywriter: Theodora Gerakiteys
Art Director: Paolo Meucci
Producer: Paul Hayes
Director: Phil Rich, 2feet Films
Director of Photography: Anna Howard
Camera Assistant: Jordon Maddocks
Post Production: Paul McDonald, Fanatic Films
Casting: Peta Einberg, Peta Einberg Casting
Location Scout: Michelle Williams
Location: Earlwood Public School, NSW

Run Baby, Run

Team Wunderman participated in the Sydney Running Festival on Saturday 16 October. The team included Hakan, Nicole, Brent, Sophie and Emily. They chose Cancer Council NSW (one of Wunderman Sydney's newest clients) as their charity, raising money from their efforts.

Brent Clarke, Head of Digital, is a former personal trainer, so he's not only up with all the latest gadgets but also a run-junky. He tracked his pedometric activities with RunKeeper: http://runkeeper.com/user/BrentClarke/activity/16709834

Unfortunately, there are no photos. While the team may be fit, they aren't sound of mind.

Do the Rabbit

Some more funky dance stylings from the Sydney creative department.

http://www.image-n.com.au/wunderDance/

Ooh yeah.

Don't even ask

It's not safe in the Wunderman Sydney Creative Department. Make one little movement and someone just might have a video camera, a music track, and access to the internet.

This is Paolo Meucci, Art Director and Premier Danseur.