Challenge

Dis-Moi Elliot (translated as Tell Me, Elliot) was a campaign that aimed to reduce prejudice about autism through an innovative, interactive and experimental website. The campaign was run by a collaboration of Dentsu Aegis Network brands and commissioned by the French Government. 

Autism affects 1 out of 100 people, meaning that most people will either be affected or know someone who is affected by the disorder, throughout their lifetime. Despite this, prejudice around the disorder remains exceptionally high, particularly so in France, where only 25% of children diagnosed with Autism attend mainstream schools.

Solution

This campaign aimed to reduce the prejudice by letting the user experience the world from the point of view of Elliot – an 8-year old child with Autism. Through this, the user would be able to better relate to Elliot, leading to increased empathy and reduced prejudice towards those with Autism.

When visiting the website, the user could view Elliot’s day to day struggles and help him overcome them by clicking and scrolling through different given options. The user would then be shown a short film recounting how Elliot’s teacher and classmates helped him get involved in theatre class.

Result

The Elliot experience generated 95% approval for the film, 80% for the website and was shared by 1 in 4 users.

The campaign also generated 56,000 interactions on social media and was widely reported on.

Most significantly, due to the initial success, Dis-Moi Elliot was given to all regional education authorities and is used as educational material in all schools in France.