Memories of water

Created by independent creative agency, Don’t Panic, and directed by Jai Moseley, through Stink Films, the film, What Jack Gave, is the global water and sanitation charity’s first ever legacy commercial.

Aiming to connect generous donars in the UK with communities around the world, the campaign centres around memories of lost loved ones. 

The film features the friends and family of ‘Jack’, as they fondly remember him and treasure the items and legacy he has left behind. Appearing as a seamless tracking shot, the film begins at a memorial in an old community centre in London's East End and transitions to Zambia, to meet the final character in the film, Mary, who is holding a glass of water.

With the words “he gave me water… life,” she poignantly reveals that Jack left a gift to WaterAid in his will, and with this, a tap for a community that he never met. His life not only had meaning to those who surrounded him but to those who benefited from his generous nature.

Rick Dodds, Creative Partner of Don’t Panic said, “With such a simple idea, we knew the emotional power would come from the cast and their performance. So we cast people who could call on their own experiences. Caroline for example, who we open on, is talking about her late husband. This gave the film an authenticity and power that a purely ‘fictional script’ couldn’t have achieved.”

He goes on to reveal how they enabled Mary to write her own line for the culmination of the film, “Again this gave the film an emotional depth that is very authentic.”