Your pitch MUST be based on the winning concept from our previous Distracted Driving Prevention Concept Project below:

I WAS DRIVING

"Why didn't you text?!" The response, "I was driving" elicits admiration and adoration. An angry lover turns to putty at the words; an angry boss offers a promotion; a scolding parent hugs a teenager who answers, "I was driving." It's a sign of character.

PLEASE NOTE: Ad Council wants to make sure that the “rewards” aren’t too flippant & recognize and reinforce the correct behavior of driving without distractions. For example, a boss giving someone a promotion just because they didn’t text while driving is funny and unexpected, but it’s not necessarily linked to the behavior. Below are some modified rewards more closely linked to the correct behavior. Feel free to use these as a creative jumping-off point when developing your pitch:

• Mom & dad text their college-aged daughter & don’t hear back. When she tells them she didn’t answer because she was driving, they start a small fund toward her used car (or say that they are proud of her, etc.).
• Boss texts their employee & doesn’t hear back. When they realize the employee wasn’t messaging while driving, they suggest a carpool, which gives the employee more face time with the boss to pitch a new idea (or say they’d like to give the employee more responsibility/trust the employee more, etc.)

Since 1942, the Ad Council has offered trusted advice and inspiring calls-to-action. In fact, they created the category of public service advertising, and their icons and slogans are woven into the very fabric of American culture. The Ad Council is where Smokey Bear lives. The Ad Council saw that “A mind is a terrible thing to waste,” and reminded Americans that, “Friends don’t let friends drive drunk.” 

Today, they are working with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) on preventing distracted driving with their existing campaign against texting & driving. 

Americans are highly aware of and concerned about the issue. More than nine in ten Americans believe texting/emailing (94%) while driving is unacceptable. There have been many efforts to educate and convey the potential consequences of distracted driving using scare tactics or preachy messaging. And, while research shows that people are convinced that the behavior is dangerous, they are still doing it. According to the Ad Council’s Texting & Driving Prevention annual tracking survey, 44% of 18-34 year olds said they have texted while driving in the past month. 

In order to address the disconnect between awareness and behavior, we need to go beyond showing people the potential crashes and gruesome results. We need to address the fact that individuals are choosing to engage in a behavior that they know is dangerous. 

PLEASE CHECK OUT THESE REFERENCE VIDEOS FOR INSPIRATION ON MESSAGING FORMAT: 

• Check out the "Good Habit" video from the Ad Council's existing campaign against texting & driving. This is a good example of the tone the Ad Council is looking for.

***Please Note that only U.S. Residents are eligible to submit for this project.***

Using your phone (whether it's texting, filming, posting, using social media, emailing, browsing, etc.) while driving is a bad idea. However, instead of focusing on the negative outcomes of distracted driving, or shaming those who multitask with their phone behind the wheel, Ad Council wants to celebrate drivers who make the right choices - and that's where you come in.

The goal of this project is to produce :30 and :15 digital videos that encourage good driving habits and avoid distracted driving. Your pitch should be based on the concept "I WAS DRIVING" sourced from a previous project. Check out the Background / Additional Details section for more information about that concept, including the brand's notes. 

While Ad Council is NOT looking for 3D animation, they ARE open to a variety of other executions - i.e live-action, 2D animation, stop motion, etc. - so feel free to get creative with how you'd bring the concept to life! 

DELIVERABLES:

• One :30 digital video in 16x9 and 1x1
• One :15 digital video in 16x9 and 1x1

 

TIMELINE: For the full project timeline please see the Assets section.

 

EXPOSURE: 

• Social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest. 
• Please check out our platform best practices page.

 

TARGET AUDIENCE: Drivers ages 18-34

 

TONE: Positive, lighthearted (but not flippant), and straight-talking

 

EXECUTIONAL MANDATORIES: 

• Do NOT show anyone driving distracted. Show people doing the positive, correct behaviors.
• Since the target demographic is adults ages 18-34, AVOID showing any teens.
• AVOID depicting anything that could be considered controversial (i.e. no “angry lovers”).
• Keep it positive and celebratory (e.g. celebrating the driver’s decision to not text and drive). Consider showing someone else (e.g. a passenger, partner, etc.) celebrating the correct behavior with the driver.
• Do NOT submit pitches that revolve around car crashes. AVOID any negative messaging that would allude to death or serious injury.
• Your pitch can include a car and/or visuals of people driving, but should really focus on the behavior of putting away distractions (not the act of driving). 
• Despite the perception, be careful NOT to reinforce the social norm that everyone is texting and driving.
• While we cannot show the negative behavior of texting and driving, we CAN build tension around the idea that texting while driving is dangerous.
• Highlight peer support for positive behavior; make people feel proud when they make the right/good decision to not text while driving.
• AVOID pitches that rely on or reference statistics, since those can frequently change and don’t capture any emotional response.
• AVOID pitches that are scary or stressful.
• AVOID pitches that are too metaphorical or take a long time to reveal the connection to distracted driving.
• AVOID pitches that rewind or go back in time to show the right decision.
• NO profanity or allusion to inappropriate behavior or action. Do NOT use language that could be considered racist/homophobic/misogynistic.
• NO references to politics, individual policymakers, or elected officials. Do NOT make any references to religion or religious figures (including "God" or “oh my god”).

NOTE: Our priority is ensuring everyone's safety, so please review our COVID-19 Production Safety Guide and check federal, state, and local rules before and during your shoot to make sure your on-set protocols are up to date. We’re working hard to keep people working during this extraordinary time, and our advice here is to make sure your submission is executable while also ensuring everyone's safety.

In order to be considered for this project, you must include the below materials in your pitch submission. For examples of effective pitches, check out this gallery.

 

• TEXT (REQUIRED): 500 characters or less synopsizing how you plan to approach and execute this video.
  
  
• LINKS (REQUIRED): To your previous video work. Please specify your role (producer, director, cinematography, etc.) and DO NOT INCLUDE LINKS TO YOUR SHOWREEL. Please link to individual videos.
  
  
• TREATMENT (REQUIRED): A detailed narrative description of what's going to happen in the video. If it's helpful to you, we've provided a treatment template, which you can find here.
  
  
• SCRIPT (REQUIRED): This should include dialogue from the video you intend to create.
  
  
• STORYBOARDS (Optional): Additional concept art, storyboards, shot list, anything that helps get your point across. You can download the Tongal storyboard template here.
  
  
• HEADSHOTS/CASTING BOARDS (Optional): Casting notes or concepts, headshots of actors, etc.
  
  
• PITCH VIDEO (Optional): This is your opportunity to be face-to-face with the Sponsor and show them what you're capable of. Consider submitting a pitch video in which you tell the Sponsor what they can expect should they choose your pitch. Also, test videos, animatics, etc. are welcome. For some examples of effective Pitch videos, check out this gallery. All Pitches will remain private until after the Sponsor gives creator(s) the green light to move forward.

1. Preferred format for upload to the Tongal website is HD 720p 16x9. Acceptable file formats are .mov, .avi, .mp4, .wmv. Acceptable codecs are H.264 (MP4), MPEG-4, H.263, MPGV, WMV, DivX. Should your submission be greenlit, you will also be required to provide a 1080p .mov master file, using a ProRes, Animation, or Uncompressed Codec.
   
   
2. Unless provided otherwise, all work must be your own original creation and free of any copyrighted material. You shall provide detailed information of your work regarding the source, the creator and background information as requested by Tongal.
   
   
3. In the event you utilize any third-party materials, such as music provided by a third-party music provider not provided by Tongal, you must obtain full written license and consent from the owner of such third-party materials and provide such license and consent forms to Tongal.
   
   
4. BY SUBMITTING A VIDEO ENTRY, YOUR SUBMISSION IMMEDIATELY BECOMES THE SOLE PROPERTY OF TONGAL OR ITS ASSIGNEES – SEE OFFICIAL RULES FOR MORE DETAILS ABOUT OWNERSHIP OF ENTRIES. YOU MAY NOT PUBLICLY SHARE OR PUBLISH YOUR SUBMISSION IN ANY MANNER AND YOU MAY NOT POST OR UPLOAD YOUR SUBMISSION TO ANY WEBSITE OR VIDEO HOSTING SITE (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, FACEBOOK, YOUTUBE OR VIMEO), WITHOUT THE PRIOR EXPRESS WRITTEN CONSENT OF TONGAL. FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH THIS REQUIREMENT MAY RESULT IN DISQUALIFICATION OF YOUR ENTRY IN THE PROJECT.
   
   
5. Submissions cannot contain any profanity, offensive language, nudity or otherwise objectionable material, the determination of which is solely at the discretion of Sponsor.
   
   
6. Submissions must not portray Sponsor in a negative way, the determination of which will solely reside with Sponsor.
    
7. By submitting to this project, you acknowledge that your work may become subject to public voting on the Tongal site. Public voting may be used to help the project sponsor determine the final rank order.
    
8. Videos must be in the English language or subtitled.
    
9. Limit 5 submissions per member, per Phase.
    
10. You must be at least thirteen (13) years or older to enter.
    
    
11. The Sponsor reserves the right to repost the contest.
    
    
12. In addition to the judging criteria stated in the OFFICIAL RULES, Pitches will also be evaluated on that member's ability to execute the final Video based on their prior work and experience as a filmmaker.
    
    
13. The Sponsor will be entitled to reasonable revisions on the finished Videos without providing additional compensation. Remember it's easier to re-edit than re-shoot so try to get as much coverage as possible.
    
    
14. In addition to the standard Tongal W-9, Winner Affidavit, and IP Assignment, greenlit Video creators MUST also provide Talent, Location, Music (or other) Releases for all assets appearing in their Videos, as well as a photograph/headshot OR copy of a photo ID for all On-camera Talent releases. You must also provide all project files, editing sequences and a 1080p .mov master file, using a ProRes, Animation, or Uncompressed Codec to claim your earnings.
    
    
15. See OFFICIAL RULES for additional contest information, terms and conditions. If there is any conflict or inconsistency between these requirements and the Official Rules, the terms and conditions of these requirements shall prevail.