Solving trepidation with animation

Your parents had sex, and one day you’ll die. How’s that for two taboos in one headline? 

As this is a piece about how we can use creativity to address/engage with/bust them, we thought we’d dive straight in. Because taboos are taboo for a reason: we don’t want to hear about it or think about them. But unfortunately a lot of the topics that fall under this umbrella are things that need to be talked about.

Talking about it without talking about it, can be a useful approach—and thank f*ck for metaphors.

Remember studying every particle of paint on the wall while your parents gave you the awkward talk about the birds and the bees? You might’ve come out of it thanking the universe that they were referring to was the pollination of flowers, and not “sex”. Reflecting on that conversation, there’s a pretty interesting point to be made: Talking about it without talking about it, can be a useful approach—and thank f*ck for metaphors.

At the beginning of 2024, we were tasked by Palliative Care Queensland to get people talking about death. Not exactly the kind of thing that makes you the popular conversationalist at a dinner party. But it is the kind of thing that has the potential to save a lot of pain and heartache down the road for yourself and those you love. 

After being briefed, we talked more about what it means to die than a 90s death-metal band. And what came out of those raw conversations was proof that there was immense power in preparing for and taking charge of the inevitable. So, how could we get others to deeply think about the unthinkable?

Animation.

Dumb Ways to Die was a shining example of how humour can make horrific information more digestible. And,  most importantly, memorable. 

We broached the topic with a two minute stop-motion film, The Cassette, which told the journey of a man facing his final moments with dignity and introspection. The warmth and tactile nature of our characters made this heaviest of subjects feel approachable. For example, Death is softened when depicted in felt, dressed as a gentleman, playing air drums or seated behind a drum kit. 

It transforms into something more approachable, rather than monstrous. And, while the reality of death is extremely daunting, animation helped us create a new reality where we can think about it differently.

Above: Despite the daunting reality of death, animation helped Cocogun create a character that felt approachable, rather than monstrous.

Stepping back from The Cassette for a minute, exactly why is animation an interesting choice for tackling tricky themes? Well, while our campaign helped to get people talking about death, the 2012 Aussie campaign Dumb Ways to Die, helped us think about ways we should avoid it. Two different, yet equally grim conversations that were approached with animation, getting people to think twice. Dumb Ways to Die was a shining example of how humour can make horrific information more digestible. And,  most importantly, memorable. 

The less real things are, the more real they can feel. Take Bodyform’s Womb Stories, for example.

Unless you’re the guy from Good Will Hunting, you probably can’t recall a safety sign that you saw on a train platform over a decade ago, yet you might remember a little purple blob getting flattened by a train for ignoring the rules. And that’s the beauty of animated storytelling: it lodges itself in our brains in ways that plain facts can’t quite manage.

The less real things are, the more real they can feel. Take Bodyform’s Womb Stories, for example. Bringing these stories to another world where they can be shown rather than told enables us to empathise with the feelings, the pain, the disappointments, the joy, the love and the hate. And in doing so, the unseen realities of menstruation, pregnancy, and miscarriage suddenly become seen. 

The scene that shows a barren wasteland made from clay cuts deep, and provides a more physical understanding that goes beyond what language alone can express.

 The virality of Save Ralph, Dumb Ways to Die and Womb Stories recognises the power of animation to evoke emotional responses in a way that resonates far and wide.

One of the key references in the making of The Cassette was Save Ralph. From the get go, we loved how the 2021 film proved that animation could invite empathy and reflection, turning a difficult topic into something engaging. 

Ralph’s story, though fiction, brings viewers face-to-face with an uncomfortable truth in a way that feels more intimate and real than a straightforward PSA ever could. The virality of Save Ralph, Dumb Ways to Die and Womb Stories recognises the power of animation to evoke emotional responses in a way that resonates far and wide.

Animation transcends barriers that are often limited with live-action.

Animation transcends barriers that are often limited with live-action. In the brilliant, filthy, immature-yet-intelligent coming-of-age sitcom, Big Mouth, monsters embody the hormones that we have been all too familiar with at certain stages in life. 

These monsters are relatable because they aren’t bound by culture, gender and sexual orientation—instead they’re fluid reminders of the thoughts, changes, attitudes and urges we have in adolescence. 

Hearing Maury say “You have enough blood to fill your heart or your schvontz, not both!" or Connie advise, “We can go from flirting to squirting in a lick of a clit!” is a much less awkward (and funnier!) way to learn about the birds, the bees, and what your parents were doing between the sheets nine months before you arrived.

As society becomes more divided and clients grow cautious, animation is proving to be a solution that brings us back together, offering a space where difficult conversations can unfold.

Above: Big Mouth’s Jessi with her hormone monster.

As society becomes more divided and clients grow cautious, animation is proving to be a solution that brings us back together, offering a space where difficult conversations can unfold. Palliative Care Queensland saw this potential, and with their support, we created something that can hopefully change lives—and deaths.

Tackling taboo subjects isn’t easy, but taking the right creative approach, enables us to be surprising, playful, humorous, irreverent…whatever tonal nuance we think will make the ideas and messages most relatable and engaging. Get this right and we’re on the right track to make these vital conversations more accessible, impactful, and lasting.