Why a Household CPG Brand Made an Honest Film About Autism

There is a gender gap in autism diagnoses, and research points to widespread public misconceptions about the experiences and needs of autistic girls. 

Vanish, a household garment care brand in the U.K., is tackling stereotypes about autism in its latest ad campaign. Though it may seem an unexpected choice for a CPG brand to address such an issue, the campaign is part of a longtime initiative from U.K. broadcaster Channel 4 to improve diversity across advertising. 

Since 2016, Channel 4 has run its annual Diversity in Advertising Award, which challenges advertisers and their agencies to pitch campaigns that are diverse and inclusive. Each year’s contest has a different theme, and the winning campaign receives $1.2 million (1 million pounds) in commercial airtime on the channel. 

The 2022 brief was to focus on disability. Only 4% of TV ads in the U.K. feature disabled people, dropping to 1% of disabled people in lead roles–despite 22% of the national population being disabled, according to Channel 4’s Mirror on the Industry report.

Vanish and agency Havas London won for their campaign about autism, and it debuts on March 31. 

The team decided to specifically focus on the experiences of an autistic girl, because research shows a gender gap in autism diagnoses. Girls are three times less likely than boys to receive a diagnosis, and diagnosis for a quarter of autistic girls can take two years or longer, according to research from Vanish’s charity partner Ambitious About Autism. 

Shattering stereotypes

Vanish’s short film, titled Me, My Autism and I, tells the story of a real autistic girl named Ash and the visceral importance of her hoodie. The narrative is based on an insight that the agency learned while collaborating with Ambitious About Autism: “clothes can be a lifeline” among autistic people, said Elliot Harris, Reckitt global executive creative director and creative partner at Havas London. 

Personal items of clothing can often be “a source of comfort to help navigate a world not built for them,” Harris explained. “For Vanish, this represents a clear, credible role for the product and a natural synergy with its purpose: keeping these clothes the same, wash after wash, really matters.” 

The film follows Ash, who has never acted before this commercial, throughout the ups and downs of her everyday life as she goes to school, plays drums and paints, and interacts with classmates, friends and family. Ash, who was diagnosed with autism 18 months ago after a three-year long process, relies on her familiar hoodie as a comforting companion. 

Ash’s parents, sister Lily and best friends also appear in the film, which was shot by Oscar-winning director Tom Hooper. 

“We set out to shatter the misconception that autism primarily impacts boys—balancing positive portrayals of autistic girls’ talents with honest, authentic insights into their struggles,” Harris continued. 

Starting a conversation

Cigdem Kurtulus, chief marketing and digital officer at Vanish owner Reckitt, said the campaign aimed to “broaden public understanding, challenge assumptions and inspire an ongoing conversation to help autistic girls, women and all autistic people get the support they need to fulfil their potential.” 

Vanish will donate 25 pence from every pack of Vanish Gold Range sold in U.K. Asda stores between March 29 and April 18 to Ambitious About Autism. 

Along with the film, the brand has partnered with model and author Christine McGuinness, who will unveil her own must-have clothing item–a grey hoodie–and share her story of autism. The campaign also features influencers ADHD Love and Ellie Midds talking about autism and their relationship to clothing. 

Vanish and Havas will host a free exhibition at London’s Gallery@Oxo between March 27 and April 2 to showcase the stories of 12 young autistic girls and their favorite clothing. The brand is also working with Ambitious About Autism and the charity Neurodiversity in Business to build support for its own neurodiverse employees. 

A long-term effort

Previous iterations of Channel 4’s Diversity in Advertising Award have sought to improve the representation of ageism (won by Tena and AMV BBDO), minority ethnic groups (won by EA Sports and adam&eveDDB), LGBTQ+ communities (won by Starbucks and Iris) and mental health (Lloyds Bank and adam&eveDDB). 

This is the first time that Channel 4 has repeated a theme–visible or nonvisible disability, which was the focus of its inaugural contest. 

Channel 4 is known for its own portrayals of disability in advertising with its ongoing Paralympics campaign “Superhumans,” which has won at Cannes Lions for each of its three chapters. 

CREDITS:

Client: Vanish (Reckitt)
U.K. marketing director, Reckitt: Cigdem Kurtulus
Head of media for U.K. Hygiene, Reckitt: Alex Owen
Senior brand manager, Reckitt: Claudia Weston
Creative agency: Havas London
U.K. group CEO, Havas Creative: Xavier Rees
Chief creative officer: Vicki Maguire
Reckitt global executive creative director: Elliot Harris
Creative director: Nick Rowland
Creative team: Hollie Iles (Senior creative), Sasha Midgley (Creative) and Aly Marx-Blackwell (Creative)
Global managing director: Tamara Greene
Managing partner: Ainhoa Wadsworth
Business director: Dom Skuratko
Senior account director: Catherine Martyn
Account director: Nicole Burgess
Account manager: Irina Patrichi
Executive strategy director: Britt Iversen
Group strategy director: Becky Taylor-Wilkinson
Strategist: Tom King
Head of creative services: Shaun Musgrove
Head of production: Katie Keith
Head of film: Louise Bonnar
Senior film producer: Katie Wood
Assistant film producer: Sian O’Halloran
Creative production director: Stefanie Price
Creative producer: Kieran Worboys, Lucy Farrell
Senior brand designer: Sarah Butler
Senior designer: Darta Losane
Conceptual designer: Morgan Shipley
Senior business affairs manager: Marta Kisluk
New business and consultant: Charlotte Anderson
Production company: Smuggler
Director: Tom Hooper
Executive producer: Lucy Kelly, Fergus Brown
Producer: Molly Pope
DoP: Steve Annis
Production designer: Robin Brown
Production manager: Meghan Young
Production coordinator: Sidney Arthur
Production runner: Izzy Davis
1st AD: Chris Kelly