Neighbourhood Watch Victoria has launched its first ever unified campaign, via Manifest, to help address the rise in aggravated motor vehicle-motivated crime across the state.
While 92 per cent of Australians consider home safety the most important factor for liveability (RACV 2023), only 53 per cent of Victorians always put their vehicle keys away in a safe place, and just 52 per cent consistently lock their doors and windows when at home (Neighbourhood Watch Victoria 2026).
The new research commissioned by Neighbourhood Watch reveals that one in four (22 per cent) of Victorians leave keys in visible or convenient places, while 28 per cent sometimes leave doors and windows unlocked during the day.
Rather than relying on fear-based messaging, Manifest used social norms theory to spotlight the positive power of collective action.
The hero film depicts a professional returning home from work, juggling groceries and a laptop as she struggles towards her front door before she realises she’s not locked her vehicle.
As she locks her car and then her front door, the motion triggers the buzzing and crackling on of a giant neon sign out the front of her home. A series of other neon signs flicker on as her neighbours return home and lock up. The spot ends with an aerial view of a neighbourhood lit up in bright neon colours in the shape of a large padlock, a metaphor for security.
The core message ‘There’s safety in neighbours’ demonstrates that when entire communities adopt consistent security habits, neighbourhoods become safer.
The creative execution features a neon-inspired visual system where suburban homes display illuminated signs reading lines such as, ‘Lock Stars Live Here’, ‘We’re Locked, Are You?’, ‘Lock Yeah’ and ‘Locked by Popular Demand’.
“Most people aren’t unaware, careless, or indifferent about locking up, they’re inconsistent,” Neighbourhood Watch Victoria CEO Bambi Gordon. “This addresses that behavioural gap head-on.”
“We know Victorians value home safety, but good intentions don’t prevent crime, consistent daily security habits do. When we all lock up, thieves leave. This is about empowering communities to take collective action through a simple act of locking up that protects not just individual homes, but entire streets and suburbs, making them safer places to live.”
Manifest co-founder and managing director Isabel Thomson-Officer said: “When Neighbourhood Watch came to us with a desire to use creativity to address a serious crime problem but wanted to do so without scaremongering, we jumped at the opportunity.
“We leaned into true blue tongue-in-cheek humour, while also paying homage to the brand’s retro roots via the neon signs and the pillarbox framing. The result is a surreal spot that lives across screens, streets and social feeds, making security feel simple, not scary at a time when many in the community are feeling the impact of rising crime.”
Media handled by Superhuman spans OOH across metro Melbourne, digital, search, TVC and BVOD channels, the campaign addresses a critical behavioural inconsistency.
The campaign includes both a 30-second and 15-second TVC and BVOD content directed by James Thomson, alongside digital and social assets, earned media, and OOH placements across metro Melbourne.
Credits
Manifest
· Creative Director – Aaron Lipson
· Copywriters – Nick Snelling, Isabel Thomson-Officer
· Art Director – Martin Farrar-Smith
· Producer – James Thomson
· Senior Designer – John Bourne-Fitzgerald
· Insights Director – Aaron Maughan
· Account Manager – Anjali Kumanan
· Campaign Executive – Nick Lavery
Film Crew
· Director/DOP/Editor – James Thomson
· First AD – Casey Filips
· Gaffer – Bryce Padovan
· First AC – Max Hopkins
· Hair and Makeup – Yvonne Borland
· Runner – Finn Mcquoid
· VFX Artist – Dave Sujono
· Foley Artist/Sound Mix – Risk Sound
Cast
· Lead Actor – Alessandra Ortiz
· Voice Over – Sancia Robinson
