April is Bowel Cancer Awareness Month and Testicular Cancer Prevention Month. However, while charities raise awareness and tutorials for self-exams readily available on YouTube, such videos are often boring or cringeworthy.

To create a self-exam reminder that audiences would watch, the U.S.-based Testicular Cancer Society launched “Highlight Your Balls.” Created by agency FP7 McCann Dubai, the campaign communicates the need for regular self-examinations to a demographic who may prefer thinking about soccer.

Soccer highlight videos rack up millions of views on YouTube, so these became the campaign’s media placement. The charity’s videos take place during the intense moments before a free kick when defenders instinctively shield their groins with their hands. The agency produced clips demonstrating how to self-exam and cut them into the on-field action using YouTube’s midroll feature.

Ball check

The clips are seamlessly interwoven, with actors dressed in the same uniforms as the players.

The campaign also launched shorts featuring different voiceover artists and team jerseys in soccer-loving hotspots. The result is more than 100 clips, all of which the agency created with just three on-screen actors and a green screen.

“This campaign is a great example of how the clever use of the latest digital tools can blur the line between video content and messaging,” Mike Craycraft, founder of the Testicular Cancer Society, said in a statement. “The result is a fun and engaging way to teach men how to perform a short and simple self-check that might just save their life.”

An estimated one in 250 people with testis will develop testicular cancer in their lifetimes, but early detection can be a lifesaver.

The ad closes by urging anyone who needs further information to visit the TCS site, which features resources for detection as well as what to do when diagnosed.

CREDITS

Agency: FP7 McCann Dubai
Global CCO: Javier Campopiano
Chief Creative Officer: Federico Fanti
Creative Director: Paulo Engler
Associate Creative Directors: Jonathan Da Cruz, Rob Hall
Art Directors: Yasmine Elashry, Diego Espinoza
Copywriters: Laila Alkaf, Liam Galt
Group Account Director: Hadi Abu Khuzam
Senior Account Managers: Amber Gan, Maryam Habib
Senior Account Executive: Elsa Gerges
Regional Director – Digital Planning & Investment: Abdelnabi Alaeddine
Associate Director – Performance: Tony Mrad
Manager – Performance: Jad Kmeid
Video Editor/Motion Designer: Guilherme Silva
Lead Editor: Deydson Rocha
Producer: Yaseen Abe
Filmmaker: Marcos Cardoso