Vanish launches the ad that won Channel 4’s diversity in advertising award

Vanish, the Reckitt detergent brand, will launch its Channel 4 Diversity in Advertising Award-winning campaign with the help of £1m commercial airtime it won as first prize.

“Me, My Autism and I” aims to nurture a conversation to broaden public understanding of autism – particularly in girls, who are three times less likely to receive a diagnosis than boys.

The ad was created by Havas London with support from Ambitious about Autism and premieres tonight during Gogglebox with a three-minute and 40-second docudrama film which tells the story of one autistic girl and the visceral importance of her hoodie:

The brief for this year’s Diversity In Advertising Award, which offers advertisers and agencies the opportunity to win £1m worth of commercial across the Channel 4 network, encouraged brands to tackle the ongoing lack of authentic portrayal and representation of visible or non-visible disabilities. It was the first time Channel 4 revisited a theme, having first tasked brands with supercharging their efforts to improve disabled representation in 2016’s award.

Research by Channel 4 shows that only 4% of TV ads in the UK feature disabled people, compared to 22% of the UK population who are disabled.

The campaign has been launched during World Autism Acceptance Week and ahead of World Autism Awareness Day this Sunday, with more executions including a £100,000 social content series produced by Channel 4’s digital content team 4Studio, an exhibition on London’s South Bank, and direct financial support to Ambitious about Autism.

Cigdem Kurtulus, chief marketing and digital officer at Reckitt, said: “Our campaign aims to broaden public understanding, challenge assumptions and inspire an ongoing conversation to help autistic girls, women and all autistic people get the support they need to fulfil their potential.

“Making clothes last longer matters for us all, but for some it really matters. Clothes aren’t just an item, they’re a lifeline for many people’s everyday lives, helping them feel comfortable and safe. It’s our ongoing mission to ensure clothes stay true to new for longer, extending the garments’ life after washing.”