Imagine Campaign

Describe your idea and concept of your work in relation to the festival outlines:

My “Imagine” Campaign is a campaign directed towards the conflict between Palestine and Israel. I picked this topic as I thought it was very interesting and shows a lot about how humans deal with conflict. For me, I focused in Palestine and Israel because I found it particularly ironic that the place a lot of religious people (Christians, Jews, Muslims alike) call the area in Gaza “The Holy Land” and is particularly sacred to some religions- and it has been in a conflict of war for a very long time. I learnt a lot about the conflict as I researched deeply into it, and also about the Islamic and Jewish religions. It was astounding the similarities between the two- worshipping a higher power, they both go by a holy book and also have a place of worship. So they are not that different, and I found that ironic as well, something that I could perhaps work with.
The conflict between Palestine and Israel is complicated and has a long history- I myself wouldn’t even know how to solve it, all I know is that warfare is never the answer. My campaign doesn’t come up with a definitive answer as to how to solve the conflict, however, it encourages viewers to “Imagine” it happening, imagine if they did solve it- what would it be like? Imagine if Israel gave Palestinians their half of the land, would that solve the conflict? Imagine that Palestinians and Israel found a way to deal with one another, compromise, accept and care for one another as humans- not as Arabs or Jews. I want my viewers to Imagine the ideal world in which people want to live in- and try to strive for that ideal world.
Connecting to John Lennon’s “Imagine” song is important. I think
it means that our ideal world- what we imagine it to be- is not that far off, if only we came together as one and co-operate with one another, live with another, care for one another. And that is what I want to accomplish with my campaign, help people realise that by “Imagining” a better future- we can then do what we can to make it a reality that is actually not that far off.

What kind of communication approach do you use?

Taking this concept, I chose a poster, stickers, badges and wristbands as my application. The campaign is for when people are protesting, or want to protest against the war. I imagine this campaign’s context to be worldwide- with focus on the countries and people that are directly affected (ie Middle East, America, Jewish People, Arabic people, Middle Eastern people living in other countries etc). The poster (Without the stickers) raises awareness about the campaign and the issue at hand. The Poster with the stickers encourages people to join into the campaign, by taking stickers and placing them on whatever surface they think is appropriate. Stickers are highly intimate objects, and for people to decide where to put them is an intimate experience. It could be on walls on streets, or it could be on a military tank (if they could). It could be on a poster of the leaders of Israel and Palestine or their car- could be anything to show the world their support for the cause. And this intimate activity encourages people to be active about what they are passionate about and to share this with everyone else- maybe even their friends. Perhaps people could get a group of friends and have a sticker session where they go around the city sticking the stickers on every surface they can find. The hashtag indicates it is active in social media as well, the twitter and facebook pages will show photos of people’s contribution to the campaign: where they have stuck the stickers and a global conversation about a topic they are passionate about. The badges and wristbands are also intimate pieces for the campaign, something to showcase to the world their own strong opinions about the particular subject.

What are in your opinion concrete benefits to the society because of your communication?

I think my campaign is beneficial to the society as it encourages people to voice their opinions: and we can do this in a visual way, not just vocally. By the act of putting stickers on outdoor surfaces, we “mark” a place with our strong opinion, and it lasts outside for quite some time. This opens up conversation with the rest of the community: What is this Imagine hashtag? Why is it everywhere? People must really care, it must be a huge topic. what would it be like if Gaza and Israel stopped war, what if there was no war in the middle east? So it encourages people to talk amongst themselves, try to imagine their ideal world and be active about it.

What did you personally learn from creating your submitted work?

I learnt a lot about the conflict as I researched deeply into it, and also about the Islamic and Jewish religions. It was astounding the similarities between the two- worshipping a higher power, they both go by a holy book and also have a place of worship. So they are not that different, and I found that ironic as well, something that I could perhaps work with.
The conflict between Palestine and Israel is complicated and has a long history- I myself wouldn’t even know how to solve it, all I know is that warfare is never the answer.

Why is your work, GOOD communication WORK?

I think my work is “good” advertising work as it promises to engage people in an activity- not just educating them by some words on
a piece of paper but making them DO something about it. I think
it is also a very intimate piece of adveritising and also unique- a campaign that is engaging, for a positive social cause and something that everyone can participate in.

Where and how do you intent do implement your work?

The campaign is for when people are protesting, or want to protest against the war. I imagine this campaign’s context to be worldwide- with focus on the countries and people that are directly affected (ie Middle East, America, Jewish People, Arabic people, Middle Eastern people living in other countries etc).

Did your intervention had an effect on other Media. If yes, describe the effect? (Has other media reported on it- how? Were you able to change other media with your work- how?)

No.