Everyone has to do their taxes, but most people only think about their taxes in the last couple weeks before April 15th, and they end up doing themselves a huge disservice. There's so much they can do to get ahead of tax season and to boost their tax returns – and this knowledge exists, right now, year round, on H&R Block's website, and largely for free. It's there along with guidance for small business owners, as well as a mobile banking platform that helps you gain financial literacy, and even more tools, tips, and tricks. In other words, the resources are out there for people to do more, but most people just aren't aware, and we want to change that. We don't just want to create awareness around all the cool stuff you can learn and do with H&R Block, we want to create excitement. Around taxes. Across the entire internet... but we can't do that without you. 

We're looking for the perfect creative partner to help conceptualize a big multi-platform campaign and address this challenge: someone smart, savvy, and unconventional. We say "creative director," and you might call yourself just that, but you might actually be an incredibly savvy team, or a visionary filmmaker who's got their finger on the pulse of social media. It doesn't matter who you are: this is about developing a big idea first. To that end, this project is primarily about coming up with a campaign for H&R Block and translating it into a visually dynamic "Treatment" or "Pitch Deck" that can presented to their leadership. 

Will you be asked to produce something? It depends. We're not requiring that you even have that capability. If H&R Block responds positively to your treatment, the scope of your continued engagement would vary based on you and your team: if you have production capabilities, we'd want you to produce some of the content for this campaign, but it's unlikely you'd personally produce every piece of content in the campaign. If you don't have production capabilities, you could be a traditional "creative director" or act as copywriter for various teams, with more of a birds-eye view, or - if you specialize in post-production - you could even end up overseeing all edits. We're open to animation here too, but you need not be an animator to pitch something with animation. Either way, if chosen, we expect you'll work closely with Tongal, H&R Block, and other filmmakers to help bring this sprawling vision to life.

H&R Block needs something really exciting and unique, and it's probably going to be digital-first, but it could include broadcast or even live events and activations. We'd suggest you focus mostly on the digital footprint, but we don't want you to think this is merely about coming up with a single YouTube series, or a suite of TikTok videos. Check out H&R Block's "Responsibility Island" as an example of something BIG that they did earlier this year. While we don't want to lean into or build on this campaign, it's a completely unexpected and novel way to get people to lean in and learn more about H&R Block. 

Whatever your approach, you'll be working with us to develop what it looks like, so be prepared for this all to take some time, and require some mean deck making skills. Your presentation should be full of visual examples and references, and we're open to including actual storyboards, but that's not a mandatory. This is exactly the kind of ask though where AI-generated images could be valuable and illustrative for the purposes of your Treatment, though we are NOT looking to include AI in the campaign, so don't go down that route. If you think a Pitch Video is helpful here, we'd love to see it, and you can include reference videos or rip reels of what you might do. Don't fixate entirely on one platform or medium here though: you should come prepared to dig in and work with us across the full campaign and multiple platforms, including – but definitely not limited to – YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, Linkedin, Facebook, broadcast, and maybe even out-of-home ads or podcasts. 

We're starting with a Pitch Qualification Phase, where two creatives or creative teams will be selected and then receive funding to put together a full pitch deck detailing your approach to a multi-platform campaign. For now, we're calling the creative budget "$100k+" to give you a benchmark to plan against, but the whole campaign could be 10 times larger, and it would ultimately be a conversation with the greenlit creator, Tongal, and H&R Block, and depend on on the greenlit creative campaign approach and needs. Also, to be frank, with a project this ambitious, it's worth acknowledging that a full greenlight is not guaranteed. It's on us (Tongal included) to get H&R Block excited and make the greenlight happen. 

THE PROCESS

• In the Pitch Qualification Phase, we want to see who's interested, and has an interesting and thoughtful approach to the campaign. We'd like a sense of how you might approach the campaign, but don't need a fully fleshed out campaign concept here. As a potential creative partner, we'd actually like a brief introduction to you (and your team) too, and links or examples of relevant past work. We understand you likely won't have run a campaign like this before, so links to content you've created for various platforms, and/or that illustrate your experience with your pitched approach, will totally work. That said, if you've been a creative director or managed a large, complex production or campaign before, or have experience managing satellite teams on previous projects, please call this out!
• Two greenlit Pitch Qualification creators will be advanced to the Pitch Phase, provided additional guidance and information, and given a total of $2,000 in funding to put together a full pitch including a deeply robust and visually intensive treatment that outlines your approach with extensive creative and technical details to demonstrate how you'd structure the multi-platform campaign, as well (if applicable) manage a robust workflow with other creative teams.
• H&R Block will evaluate these pitches and determine if they would like to move forward with a team.

For any questions or other project updates, check out the Project Forum.

DELIVERABLES: 

• One creative Treatment or Pitch Deck (PDF/PPT). 
• Beyond that is basically TBD. The ultimate goal is to develop robust creative for multiple platforms, inclusive of additional work by more Tongal creators as well as your team. That could mean traditional videos in 16x9, 1x1, 4x5, and 9x16 aspect ratios, running anywhere from :06 to 30 minutes, or static assets, banner ads, podcasts, GIFs, etc.. 

EXPECTED TIMELINE: HERE. This only accounts for development. Timeline from there is TBD too.

RELEVANT ASSETS: You can find logos, brand colors, and hero font files for H&R Block, Block Advisors, and Spruce HERE.

EXPOSURE: We expect content will be used on the platforms below.

• Broadcast
• H&R Block / family brand owned sites and channels
• Instagram
• TikTok
• Facebook
• YouTube

TARGET AUDIENCE: Americans seeking tax advice and guidance, small and medium business owners, anyone on a path towards financial literacy or seeking a mobile banking option...essentially, everyone!

TONE/FEEL:  Attention-getting, relatable, exciting, authentic, informative, entertaining, encouraging.

EXECUTIONAL MANDATORIES: 

• Campaign approaches must be led by video formats (but not a specific platform), even if they include static assets, out of home assets, or podcasts.
• Please use H&R Block's branding elements (logos, fonts, colors) linked above in Relevant Assets.

By participating in this project, creators acknowledge that the Sponsor is under no obligation to greenlight a submission. Though most projects do move forward, we'll notify you in the event the Sponsor decides not to fund any submissions via the Project Forum. Regardless of the result, all submissions will be reviewed and evaluated by the Sponsor and project team.

PITCH QUALIFICATION PHASE:

In order to be considered for the full Pitch Phase, you must include the below in your Pitch Qualification submission. This Phase gives filmmakers the opportunity to submit a short 500-character synopsis with some initial creative thoughts for the content, and tell us a bit more about your team. Five creators will then be given $1,000 to develop robust treatments as part of the Pitch Phase.

 

• TEXT (REQUIRED): Up to 500 characters synopsizing how you plan to approach and produce the content listed out in the Deliverables.
  
  
• TREATMENT / TEAM BREAKDOWN (REQUIRED): This document should include a profile of you, your company, or your potential team, and also address your ability to scale up and manage other remote teams. You may also feel free to include case studies, bios, or other relevant information, but no creative approach is expected here.
  
  
• LINKS (REQUIRED): To relevant previous video work. Please specify your role (producer, director, cinematography, etc.) and DO NOT INCLUDE LINKS TO YOUR SHOWREEL. Please link to individual videos.
  
  
• 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.

PITCH PHASE:

If selected to move forward to the Pitch Phase, you will be sent additional information about the campaign to create a more robust Treatment as part of your pitch. You must include the below materials in your pitch submission to be considered. 

• TEXT (REQUIRED): Up to 500 characters synopsizing how you plan to approach and execute this content.
  
  
• TREATMENT (REQUIRED): A detailed narrative description of your approach to the campaign and its production. You should address your approach to pre-production, overseeing production, post-production, and delivery, including how you would stay organized, communicate & liaise with satellite filmmakers and photographers, maintain cohesion between properties, and approach a large number of deliverables and client feedback in post-production.

• LINKS (REQUIRED): To relevant previous video work. Please specify your role (producer, director, cinematography, etc.) and DO NOT INCLUDE LINKS TO YOUR SHOWREEL. Please link to individual videos.

• 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. 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. Tongal also reserves the right to request all raw files associated with the project.
   
   
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. 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.
   
   
5. Preferred format for upload to the Tongal website is HD 720p and formatted for the aspect ratios listed in the Deliverables (e.g. 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.
   
   
6. 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.
   
   
7. You may not contact any employees or members of the Sponsor's organization, their affiliates, or any of their partners. Failure to comply with this requirement may result in disqualification of your entry in the project.
   
   
8. 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 creator.
   
   
9. Videos must be in the English language or subtitled.
   
   
10. Submissions must not portray Sponsor in a negative way, the determination of which will solely reside with Sponsor, nor can Submissions contain any profanity, offensive language, nudity or otherwise objectionable material, the determination of which is solely at the discretion of Sponsor.
    
    
11. You must be at least thirteen (13) years or older to enter.
    
    
12. The Sponsor reserves the right to repost the contest.
    
    
13. 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.