Brisbane-based creative and digital advertising agency Khemistry has unveiled a social marketing campaign it has developed for the Queensland government which aims to smash the perception barrier of employing people with a disability.
The campaign, entitled ‘Everybody has a role to play’, addresses limitations put on employment opportunities for people with disability and aligns with the launch of the Queensland government’s new All Abilities Plan.
The first video in the three-part series, titled ‘The No Pile’, is a music video performed in black box theatre-style that is based on shared stories from the performers about rejections they have faced over the years when applying for jobs.
The video series features actors from inclusive theatre company indelabilityarts, an organisation that provides professional training opportunities for artists and community members with disability.
Khemistry creative director Lindsay Thompson said authenticity was front-of-mind when producing the campaign.
“When we were given the brief, our biggest focus was on making sure that whatever we developed was absolutely 100 per cent authentic,” he said.
“A chance encounter with indelabilityarts co-founder Catarina Hebbard provided us with a unique opportunity to chat to people who have experienced first-hand the frustrations involved in applying for a job and automatically being assigned to the ‘no’ pile.
“We were shocked by some of the excuses they’ve heard from potential employers over the years. Ableism (the discrimination against people with disability) is a very real issue and something many people in society, whether they realise it or not, are guilty of.
“After hearing these stories, we decided that there was no one better to tell this story than them – and so, through an uncanny creative collaboration, ‘The No Pile’ came to life.
“It just goes to show that when a network of self-motivated people with a collective vision come together and share ideas, information and work, the results can be truly amazing.
“We hope this campaign encourages more employers to put people with disability on the ‘yes’ pile – focusing on ability rather than disability when reviewing job candidates and giving equal opportunity to all.”
The campaign will be rolled out via a dedicated website, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and Twitter via both the Queensland government’s and Khemistry’s social channels.
