This Heartwarming Norwegian Film About Foster Homes Has Gone Viral

An ad from Norway for foster care, which features a little boy and his empty lunchbox at school, appears to have captured the hearts of viewers, with over 118 million views so far on social media.

The spot, by Kitchen Leo Burnett and sensitively directed by Jens Lien of Einar Film, is for The Norwegian Directorate for Children, Youth and Family Affairs (Bufdir). It shows the boy opening up his lunchbox to find it empty. He goes off miserably to the water fountain, but when he returns, he finds it full of food. As he looks around the classroom, it transpires that each child has put a little portion of their own lunch into his box to make a meal.

The ad ends with the words: "Solutions are often closer than you think. We need more foster homes, preferably in the children's local areas." Since first breaking on May 23 on Facebook, it has been racking up views via social sharing sites all over the world -- perhaps helped by the fact that it is virually dialogue-free, and promotes not just foster care but a universal message about community.