The 7-Day Brief Competition held at Dubai Lynx in association with Google and powered by Youtube saw Shafiq Alam and Mohamad Sarhi from Jeddah winning the competition for their heart touching video on domestic abuse on women. The competition was brought in support of UN Women’s mission to end violence against women.
The winners tackled the brief by portraying a young woman giving a makeup tutorial or ‘vlogging’ about how to cover facial bruises – a parody spin that leverages the growing popularity of beauty channels on YouTube around the world. The 60-second film concludes by urging viewers to donate to the UN organization and to support the set-up of hotlines throughout the region for victims.
Mr Alam and Mr Sarhi commented, “It feels great to be recognized among so many amazing entries from the region especially since it’s for a good cause. The brief gave us an opportunity to tackle an important issue in the region and to raise awareness on domestic violence. Posting the videos to YouTube allowed us to spread this message effectively across the region and the globe.”
Official figures suggest that one in three women have experienced some form of abuse but actual numbers are likely to be much higher. In the MENA region, UN WOMEN aims to improve and expand mechanisms to protect women, including shelters, psychosocial services and legal support. Hotlines will tie these services together in each country, with women able to call 24-hours a day.
“The silence surrounding violence against women in the region needs to be broken, violence against women and girls is the single most harmful practice in achieving equality. The winning entry is incredibly powerful, it’s a conversation starter and shows us that violence for many women is a lived reality”, observed Mohammad Naciri, Regional Director, UN Women.
Tarek Abdalla, Head of Marketing for Google in MENA, said, “Through the 7-Day Brief, we hope to encourage people to use technology to spread positive and powerful messages to millions of people around the world.”
Winners of the competition are offered the chance to travel to the Cannes Lions international festival in France this year.
“We’re delighted to have partnered with YouTube to once again deliver the 7-Day Brief. It’s an incredibly effective competition that raises the profile of both the winners and the client. The UN Women’s mission is an important one and the winning video has resonated with this resulting in a powerful campaign. I’d like to congratulate the team on their worthy win,” said Emma Farmer, Festival Director, Dubai Lynx.