An Ogilvy campaign is using bald cartoon characters to show support for children with cancer.
The campaign, for Brazilian Cancer Hospital, GRAACC, hopes that characters such as Snoopy and Hello Kitty will show that even children with cancer ‘can come out to play and be happy’.
Initially launched in November 2013, ‘Bald Cartoons’ has been extended to coincide with International Cancer Awareness month, with some 40 characters from various countries revealing their bald heads in a series of short films.
New bald characters include Popeye and Olive Oyl, Charlie Brown and Hello Kitty.
The campaign includes a series of print ads, a website where visitors can pledge their support, and clips of TV cartoons featuring the bald characters.
The website also features a video showing the background to the campaign and how children receiving treatment at the GRAACC, one of the largest paediatric oncology centres in Latin America, responded to the cartoons.
With the Bald Cartoons movement, Ogilvy Brasil wants to draw attention to the fact that, according to GRAACC, prospects of cure for childhood cancer are around 70 per cent, dependent on early detection and the correct treatment.
“We want to reduce all prejudice around the disease. There is no difference between a child with cancer and any other one. Both are children and deserve to be happy,” said Roberto Fernandez, creative general director at Ogilvy Brasil.
In Brazil, the campaign is thought to have reached 120 million people. It has struck a particular chord with social media users many of them changing their avatars to show their support.
A number of celebrities endorsed ‘Bald Cartoons’, including footballer Neymar Jr and former footballer Ronaldo. Brazil’s president, Dilma Rousseff, took to Twitter to support the campaign.