BetterHelp is looking for creative videos that immediately illustrate a relatable need for affordable counseling that empowers anyone to pursue professional help via their mobile and online platform staffed with trained professionals. 

Everyone experiences difficult moments in life, but not everyone has access to the help they need or realizes that it is okay to seek help. BetterHelp is an affordable counseling service platform where individuals can get the help they need, the way they need it, from licensed and accredited professionals.

Working with Tongal, BetterHelp wants you to come up with some relatable, emotional concepts for a social media Ad that demands attention and encourages people to get the counseling support they need. There are many reasons it’s difficult to obtain assistance; whether it’s embarrassment, a lack of time, or financial resources, BetterHelp provides accessible and immediate professional help anywhere at any time.

Choose a Winning Concept below that can be communicated in an instant (six-to-fifteen seconds), instead of a story, think a graphic image you can’t get out of your head. Everything is on the table, whether it involves intense emotion, uplifting empowerment, animation, motion graphics, original footage, or something else - as long as it feels relatable for those in need, and treats them with the respect they deserve.

WINNING CONCEPTS with Brand Notes (if applicable in red):

1. The Sinking Bed of Anxiety: An out-of-state college girl lays on her dorm bed, daydreaming about reuniting with her family. Her dorm mates try to take her to the park, but she’s frozen in melancholy. Her top bunk sinks into the floor (VFX). Better Help restores her bliss.
   • Brand Notes: For this concept, we feel it would be more relatable and convey a clearer message if instead of the sinking bed acting as a metaphor for anxiety, it could act as a metaphor for depression. It would serve to emulate that feeling of not being able to get up or feeling weighed down and sinking into the bed because of depression. 

     For reference, these two articles summarize the feeling we would like to convey with this ad

     https://themighty.com/2016/11/depression-when-you-cant-just-get-up-and-get-moving/

     https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-bipolar-lens/201503/when-your-mind-wont-let-your-body-move

     As for the messaging, something like “ Don’t let depression swallow you whole”, “Learn to move again”,  or “Don’t let depression paralyze you” would make sense, but we are very open to different copy generated by the designer.
     

2. We All Face Something: Montage of people happily taking selfies with their smartphones, all with a superimposed hashtag telling us which emotional disorder each person secretly faces. Caption: Everybody faces something. No one has to face it alone. BetterHelp.
   • Brand Notes: For this concept, we would like to focus on issues that are common and widely relatable to women. Some ideas that we could try would be focusing on depression and self-esteem issues. Potential hashtags that could be used are #lonely when a person is surrounded by a group of people, #depressed when the person is smiling, #fat or #ugly on an attractive individual, #weak or #insecure on an athletic woman flexing. There are many variations of this, but as long as they relate to depression or self-esteem issues, they should be relatable. 
3. Behind The Emoji: Emoji faces, depicting various states of distress are superimposed over real people. A title along the lines of ’You don’t have to hide your feelings’ appears along with the contact details of BetterHelp and the emojis fade away.
   • Brand Notes: This concept will be about using the visual representation of emojis as a literal and figurative mask to cover one’s true feelings. Simplicity will be key here to ensuring that the messaging is easily conveyed in a short time span.
4. Get It Off Your Submission:  Woman unzips herself or just her sweater, & all her painful thoughts and feelings are released in words unfurling from her. She smiles w/ eyes closed. Text overlay: Get it Off Your Chest. Sign up for BetterHelp now. Affordable. Discrete. Effective.
   • Brand Notes: Provocative is what we are going for here in the visuals of revealing and letting go the emotions and issues bottled up inside.  FB note: *There is nudity sensitivity on FaceBook, so we will obtain specific rules relating to this concept from FB and communicate it to our filmmakers where the line lays. Okay to be provactive but no nudity!*

Please read the remainder of the brief for all of the important details.

The goal of this Project is to inspire :06 - :15 videos on Facebook that drive people, mostly women, to get the help they need through BetterHelp, an affordable online counseling platform available anytime, anywhere.  We want viewers to stop, reflect on how they KNOW that experience, and be motivated to immediately contact BetterHelp and get the help they need.

--Success Metric:

• The success of the program will be measured by the number of people that sign up for BetterHelp’s services by viewing the videos created.

--Target Audience:

• Females (22-54) in rural areas
• These women may be emotionally reactive and vulnerable to stress.  In these situations, minor frustrations can become hopelessly difficult.

--BetterHelp Communication Territories:

• Common Emotional Problems
  1. Depression
  2. Anxiety
  3. Stress
  4. Self-Esteem
  5.  Separation

Please note: For most users, this will be the first introduction to BetterHelp’s brand as well as the idea of online counseling.

IMPORTANT: No filmmakers may begin shooting their Video until the sponsor has given final approval of their Treatment. If you begin shooting your Video before Treatment approval there is a chance you will need to reshoot (at your own expense) so please don’t jump the gun.

If you’re selected as a Pitch Winner, a Tongal producer will email you to help walk you through the Pre-Production and Approvals process.

--Deliverables: Each Filmmaker will be required to produce a minimum of 8 videos based on one winning Concept. Please see the 4 winning Concepts to choose from in the Background section. So for example if a community member decides they like the Concept Sinking Bed they will be required to deliver the following:

• Two 15 second versions of Sinking Bed.  In order to get the most bang for their production dollars we’ll give the filmmakers the option to utilize the same set and talent for both 15s but explain in their Pitches how each version would be different e.g. One Sinking Bed :15 is geared toward the tagline "Learn How to Move Again" and another :15 is geared toward "Don’t let Depression Paralyze You."
• :06 second versions of each 15 second Version
• An A/B version of both 15-second versions AND an A/B version of each 6-second version. (4 total A/B versions) 8 Videos total
  
• For each :15 and :06, they will also create an A/B version with a variable we want to test
  • An A/B version of the :15-second
  • An A/B version of the :06 cutdown
  • A/B Variable to be tested: As for the variable we would like to test, we are interested in looking at the effect of having persistent text on the video (on the top or bottom of the video) vs not having text. The only thing we ask that you be mindful of concerning this variable is that Facebook has a rule where the proportion of text in the thumbnail of the video has to be less than 20% or else the ad will be rejected by Facebook. We are able to change the thumbnail to any frame in the video, so it would be great if either the text was a small enough portion of the video that it will not be a problem for Facebook, or if there is a frame included that will pass by the rule.

--Key Marketing Messages: Affordable. Discrete. Effective.

--Primary Audience: Females (22-54)

--Exposure: Facebook and Instagram. These Videos will be used in PAID advertisements within the Facebook feed and may be on the brand’s homepage.

--Company Artwork & Logo: https://www.betterhelp.com/press-kit/

PRE-PRODUCTION NOTE: This project includes a Pre-Production Phase (What is a Pre-Production Phase?). This means you will be required to submit certain items for Approval before moving onto the Video Phase. The Approval item for this project is:

• SCRIPT  – This project requires Script Approval before filmmakers move onto the Video Phase. The brand may provide feedback on your Script and ask you to submit a new version. There may be multiple rounds of feedback until a Script is approved by the brand.

IMPORTANT: No filmmakers may begin shooting their Video until all Approvals are completed and the Video Phase has officially begun. If you begin shooting your Video during the Pre-Production Phase, there is a chance you will need to reshoot (at your own expense) so please don’t jump the gun.

If you’re selected as a Pitch Winner, a Tongal producer will email you to help walk you through the Pre-Production and Approvals process.

NOTE: The :15-second videos and the :06-second cut-downs are all due at the close of the Video Phase.  Please upload them as separate videos when submitting your Videos.

This Project consists of 4 Phases: a Pitch Phase, a Pre-Production Phase, a Video Phase and a Revisions Phase. Be sure to read the following information carefully as well as the Official Rules.

PHASE 1: PITCH - Submit your Pitch (What is a Pitch Phase?) convincing the Sponsor why you should be selected to execute a Video based on one of the winning Ideas from the previous Phase using:

• Text (REQUIRED): 500 characters or less synopsizing how you plan to approach and execute this Video.
• Treatment (REQUIRED): A detailed narrative description of what’s going to happen in the 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.
• Script (Optional): 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.
• Headshots/Casting Boards (Optional): Casting notes or concepts, headshots of actors, etc.
• Pitch Video (Optional but recommended): This is your opportunity to show us 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.

The four (4) most compelling Pitch(es) will be selected and, upon submitting the Winner’s Affidavit and the IP Assignment, will each receive $2,500 to help create the Video suite. Additionally, upon submitting a Video that satisfies the criteria laid out in your winning Pitch, the Pitch winner(s) will also be GUARANTEED a winning place in the subsequent Video Phase.  So, if your Pitch is selected and you execute your Pitch effectively in your Video submission, you will win an additional $2,500.  For an example of an effective Pitch, check out The Indie Machines winning “3 Artists & 5,000 LEGOs” Pitch video. All Pitches will remain private until after the winner of the Video Phase is announced and the Project is complete.    

PHASE 2: PRE-PRODUCTION – The Pitch Winners from the Pitch Phase will enter the Pre-Production Phase (What is a Pre-Production Phase?). During this phase, filmmakers will need to receive the following Approval from the brand:

• SCRIPT  – This project requires Script Approval before filmmakers move onto the Video Phase. The brand may provide feedback on your Script and ask you to submit a new version. There may be multiple rounds of feedback until a Script is approved by the brand.

No filmmakers may begin shooting their videos until all Approvals are completed and the Video Phase has officially begun. If you begin shooting your Video during the Pre-Production Phase, there is a chance you will need to reshoot (at your own expense) so please don’t jump the gun.

PHASE 3: VIDEO – Once the Pre-Production Phase is complete, the Pitch Winner(s) will each create a :15-seconds Video based upon their winning Pitch, and a :06 cutdown from the video.

NOTE: The :15-seconds Video and the :06-second cut-down are all due at the close of the Video Phase. Please upload them as separate videos when submitting your Videos.

--Video Phase Payout: Once the videos are completed, the Sponsor approves, the files are received and all required paperwork completed the  Winners of the Video Phase will be paid a final installment of $2,500.

--Music: Tongal has partnered with three premiere music providers: Jingle Punks, Killer Tracks and Epidemic Sound. Any of which can be used to source music for your Video submission to this Project. Music from these providers is available to registered Tongal members at no charge solely for their incorporation into Submissions to this Project and will not require a separate Music Release Form. To learn more about using each of these music providers, click on any of the provider’s names above.

Tongal members interested in a more customized music solution for your project are invited to connect with our partner Score a Score. Email a brief description of your project (timing, creative, budget, etc.), along with any specific music direction and/or references to their creative team at music@scoreascore.com and include “Tongal Project - Your Name” in the subject line. Their creative team will be in touch within a few minutes to discuss the simple process and options with you!

If you are selected as a winner and choose to use custom/original music, you must fill out and submit our Music Release Form. If you obtain music from other catalog providers, you must purchase the appropriate license at your own expense and submit it with our Music Release Form when you turn in your Video paperwork.

PHASE 4: REVISIONS – Once the Video Phase has closed, the winning submitters will enter the Revisions Phase (What is a Revisions Phase?). During this phase, filmmakers will perform reasonable edits on their Videos according to the Sponsor’s feedback. Once the Videos are finalized, the Sponsor will rank the Videos and winners will be announced.

1. The Video MUST not exceed :15-seconds in length.  The preferred format for upload to the Tongal website is 1080x1080 resolution for the masters Videos, and 720x720 for the rough cuts of Videos.  HD 1080x1080 - 1x1 Square FB/IG Native.  Acceptable file formats are .mov, .avi, .mp4, .wmv. Acceptable codecs are H.264 (MP4), MPEG-4, H.263, MPGV, WMV, DivX. Should you win, 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 the Sponsor in a negative way, the determination of which will solely reside with the 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 at their discretion.

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 Video(s) 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, winning Video creators MUST also provide Talent, Location, Music (or other) Releases for all assets appearing in their winning 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 prize.

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.