Happy Hour FAIL

It is almost October, which marks National Collegiate Alcohol Awareness month in the USA. To bring attention to the issue of drinking and driving among the college age group, Sherry Matthews Advocacy Marketing and Trigger Studios created a animated video for the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) that highlights the consequences of a DWI (Driving While Intoxicated). The story is illustrated through social media and other digital tools that young adults use every day (see the dislike option at 1:16 :-). The viewer is positioned as the protagonist, allowing them to truly get a feel for how a DWI could unravel their life.

Texas currently leads the US in the number of deaths caused by drinking and driving, and the college age group is particularly at risk. According to crash records from 2009, Texans between the ages of 17 and 24 accounted for 27.5 percent of all drinking and driving deaths in the state—a shockingly high number considering that this age group represents only 8 percent of the overall population in Texas.

The ‘Happy Hour FAIL’ video is part of TxDOT’s fall college DWI-prevention campaign. It is also used as a trimmed down 30-second pre-roll version of the ad on Hulu and a network of other sites, as well as ads on Facebook.
The video channel is also designed in the campaign style. The YouTube channel is the landing page for the campaign: www.whosdrivingtonight.com.

Two outdoor ads:

Kits for resident assistants in the dorms at several Texas colleges and universities. The kits include: a series of posters to be hung up in dorm common areas (see below), decals for windows and mirrors, a booklet with information about DWI laws in Texas, and sign-up sheets for students who agree to be designated driver for the week.

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