Kids get a shock at an aquarium in Greenpeace's disturbing PSA via Ogilvy

The problem of plastic in the oceans has become intensely high-profile recently, spurred on by the final episode of the BBC David Attenborough show "The Blue Planet." Last week we saw the nonprofit Sea Shepherd release a film about the ocean that morphs from relaxing to disturbing, and now Greenpeace is highlighting the issue with a PSA that sees a group of Irish school kids on a trip to an aquarium get an unpleasant shock. Created by Ogilvy U.K., the film was staged at Dingle Aquarium, Ireland, where the elementary-aged kids are being taken to see an "Ocean of the Future" exhibit. The children are captured on camera talking excitedly about which animals and fish they are looking forward to seeing; however, when they get inside, all they see is pieces of single-use plastic floating in the water. The aquarium exhibit was built using plastic collected from the local beach the previous day--and we're assured the kids really were unaware what was going on. After we see their crestfallen faces, the film informs us that U.K. supermarkets produce 800,000 tons of plastic every year. It encourages consumers to sign a Greenpeace petition calling for supermarkets to reduce their plastic footprint. The film will be run on social media and in cinemas, and will be accompanied by outdoor ads. Mick Mahoney, chief creative officer at Ogilvy London says: "Aquariums are often viewed as perfect, manicured worlds which give us a false sense of security when it comes to the state of our ocean. What we wanted to bring to life was the reality of what the future looks like if we continue as we are today." Expect more creativity as agencies turn their attention this issue; it isn't going to go away.

An aquarium outing goes terribly wrong in Greenpeace's disturbing anti-plastic PSA

Featured Stories