Under the influence

Toronto – A new campaign by Drug Free Kids Canada (DFK Canada) and FCB/SIX aims to educate teenagers about the dangers of driving while under the influence of drugs.

• The Call That Comes After is designed to spark a constructive dialogue about drugs between teenagers and their parents
• The interactive video focuses on marijuana but the wider campaign highlights the risks associated with all drugs, including prescription medication

Parents enter their child’s contact details on the campaign microsite to send a link to the video, which depicts two teenagers travelling in a car while under the influence of marijuana. The car crashes into a truck and the camera switches to a shot of the protagonist’s broken smartphone screen, which displays a series of concerned messages from her mother. The viewer receives a text at the same time, supposedly from their own parent, urging them to not ‘get high and drive’.

Almost one-third (32%) of teenagers believe that that driving after using marijuana is not as risky as drink-driving, and one in four high school students have been a passenger in a car with a high driver, according to a study commissioned by DFK Canada.