New Zealand’s “It’s Not OK” campaign, launched by the NZ government in 2007, is raising awareness of the realities of domestic violence in affluent homes with “Paradise Hill”, a four-page spread feature in Homes Magazine. The June/July 2015 feature presented a photographic essay on the Ashworth family in their modern home built over four years, just another example of the magazine’s lavish spreads of inspiring homes. The second spread reveals the first clue that not all is what it seems: a smear of blood on a wall near the stairs. The third spread reveals an overturned chair and a shattered bowl. The fourth spread shows a broken table.
On the lower-right corner of the final page, a paragraph explains the reality behind the facade. “Family violence can happen in any home. Last year alone, police made more than 100,000 family violence investigations across the country in every kind of neighborhood. And these are just the incidents we know about. If you suspect someone in your community is experiencing violence, please don’t ignore it. No matter what street you live on, family violence is not OK. For more information on how to help, visit areyouok.org.nz.”
It’s Not OK research shows that 26 percent of women who live in a home with a household income over $100,000 a year have experienced physical or sexual violence from an intimate partner, as have one in four women who have completed a university degree or higher.
“Everyone knows that family violence is a serious issue, but most people presume it’s something that affects certain families,” says Jeremy Hansen, editor of Home magazine. “But in reality, family violence happens in any New Zealand home, regardless of socioeconomic background. That’s why, in our new issue, Home is working with It’s Not OK to remind our readers that family violence can affect any household—and if it does, there’s something all of us can do about it.”
Credits
The It’s Not OK in Paradise Hill campaign was developed at FCB New Zealand by regional executive creative director James Mok, executive creative directors Tony Clewett, Regan Grafton, copywriter Matt Williams, art director Freddie Coltart, head of craft Nick Smith, designer/retoucher Mike Braid, group account director Jane Wardlaw, account manager Chanelle McDonald, head of content and art buyer Pip Mayne, editors Jared Yearsley and Grant Nicholson, head of media (strategy) Rufus Chuter, media manager Nicole Earnshaw, media director Rachel Leyland, head of media (PR, Activation, Social) Angela Spain, PR account manager Alice Eade, brand experience director Ele Quigan and digital media director Kate Grigg.
Photography was by Simon Wilson (magazine) and Mike Braid (film).