NM5211: Serious Games & Learning Media

Anti-smoking campaigns tend to be very serious and objective (e.g. Australian Government advertisement http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lEc-Rsv9pMc). Although the advertisements generated by these campaigns are becoming increasingly creative (e.g. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KYIoA_kXLxY), there have not been many changes in how the message is being delivered to the audience. A satirical approach and heavy use of sarcasm about commonly cited reasons that smokers often use to justify their habit is employed. This keeps the delivery light-hearted while at the same time jarring the audience into thinking about serious issues related to smoking. We took the most common reasons that smokers use to justify smoking and portrayed them in a satirical manner.

Reason 01: Smoking makes you feel good. In contemporary times, smoking has become related to looking cool and looking like an adult. We chose to satirize this concept by portraying the character coughing heavily (instead of looking cool) when he smokes.

Reason 02: Smoking makes you popular. Another reason that teenagers pick up smoking is that it makes them look cool and thus become more popular amongst their peers. We satirize this idea by showing that although the character has friends (the 2 girls) but his friends have to wear face masks to protect themselves from his smoking.

Reason 03: Smoking helps relieve stress. Smokers often cite that smoking helps them relax, thus smoking is good. The truth is that dependence on smoking puts the body into a state of heightened anxiety, which can only be brought back to normal levels through smoking. We satirize this fallacy by portraying the character going for numerous smoking breaks (at the expense of his work efficiency) in order to continue feeling relaxed.

Reason 04: Alcohol is worse than smoking. Another reason cited by smokers is that alcohol is much more harmful to the human body and to society as a whole (i.e. drunk driving). Thus, banning alcohol should take precedence over banning smoking. We satirize this idea by portraying the character in a silly scenario (as opposed to a serious drunk driving scenario) as a result of being very drunk.

Reason 05: Even non-smokers die every day. Tobacco companies often cite research that there are no conclusive links between smoking and various health problems, that even non-smokers die of lung cancer. We satirize this relationship between smoking and health by portraying a person dying due to a totally unrelated reason - being run down by a bus.

Category:

Education

Tags:

• NUS
• Arts & Social Sciences
• Anti-smoking
• MACHINIMA
• NUS Second Life
• NM5211
• Serious Games & Learning Media