Death becomes him: making the inevitable easier to deal with

Death is a difficult subject but as we all have to face it, we might as well embrace it. This new spot for end-of-life charity and care provider, Palliative Care Queensland, is suitably sensitive and life-affirming in its bid to get people to open up about their final wishes.

The hand-crafted stop motion puppets give the film a softer touch, and the storyline by agency Cocogun allows the dying man to go out on his own terms, smiling as he plays his favourite song – Here Comes the Man by the Pixies – with his family.

Chiquita King, co-founder and MD of Cocogun, said: “We needed to approach the topic with the utmost sensitivity and respect, while challenging people’s reticence to talk about the inevitable. Stop motion animation was a deliberate strategic and creative choice to ensure we captured a story that was relatable, heart-warming and provocative without being insensitive or too confronting.”

MAA creative scale: 7.5