The Movember Foundation has created a series of five long-form documentaries and, beginning today, will launch one per day on Instagram’s IGTV platform.
These stories, ranging from 2:30- to 5-minutes long, are more hard-hitting than previous Movember campaigns. Each recounts the experiences of men living with the life-altering results of prostate and testicular cancer and its treatment. These effects pose serious challenges in their sex life, relationships and mental health. The first film features Alonzo, who is dealing with treatment side effects including incontinence and erectile dysfunction.
Jon Tower Akerman, Movember global digital director, explained that the foundation decided to use IGTV because the bold platform is right in line with Movember’s objectives of remaining innovative, being bold, and giving back to its community. New products and technology platforms like IGTV, he said, are also a priority for the campaign’s young male target group.
“We continue to focus on our audience of 25- to 44-year-old men — who are our most engaged fundraisers and are heavy social media users across the board. Instagram, however, also provides a unique crossover into the younger generation of 16- to 20-year-old men, where we seek to build resilience in young men and boys on the topics of mental health and suicide prevention. We know they over-index compared to the general population and spend disproportionately more time on Instagram.”
This is not the first time the foundation has experimented with digital content platforms. It launched its own mobile app and updated its iOS app in 2017 to enable the public to share their own content across channels.
Akerman says, “We’re starting to look at new ways to help our community tell deeper, more meaningful stories about what motivates them to take part in the Movember fundraising campaign. At the end of the day, we’re the roadies, they’re the rockstars.”
The documentaries were directed, produced and edited by Andrew Maguire, a long-time member of the Movember family, and his team at Pigeon Road Films. They can be viewed at Instagram.com/Movember.
