The New SickKids’ Commercial is Completely Kick-Ass

Whoa. Was that… a SickKids’ commercial?

Prepare to have your mind blown by the genius that is SickKids’ newest campaign.

There’s a noticeable lack of sad music. It has elements of fantasy, and far from looking odd, they feel spot on—this is a campaign for and about children, after all, so a little make believe isn’t out of place. It’s edgy, cool, powerful, and tugs at your heart in a painful way.

It’s also entirely motivating. It’s a rallying cry, and it makes the viewer remember that ‘fight’ is a verb. As in, the fight against cancer, or liver failure, or cystic fibrosis, or anything else—it’s not a passive thing done only by strangers in white coats. It’s a physical act we must all take part in if we’re going to be successful in beating these terrible things.

SickKids undoubtedly needs donations, and a commercial that makes you feel like you need to stand up and ­do something is a commercial that gets it right.

For the unfamiliar, the Hospital for Sick Children, better known as SickKids, is the world’s second-largest hospital-based paediatric research facility and is located in downtown Toronto. It’s been around since 1875 and is widely considered to be a world leader in paediatric healthcare. Some of their biggest wins include the discovery of the gene responsible for cystic fibrosis, the first successful cardiac surgery on a baby in utero, and a new approach for detecting cancer early in patients at high risk for the disease.

The new commercial, called ‘Anthem’, was released on October 14 and is the first in a four-part series. ‘Grace’, ‘Broken Hearts’, and ‘Missing Home’ are all yet to come.

More than 100 SickKids staff members and about 50 SickKids patient families were involved in the filming.

You can watch the commercial, learn more about the new campaign, and donate at sickkidsfoundation.com.