Procedures

Following an extended absence after the death of someone close to me (don't worry, it was pneumonia, not passive smoking or a drinking driver) I'm back and I'm trying to get an appointment with Film Images for next week, so suggestions still welcome. Meanwhile, thanks to the lovely Applemask, I've discovered YouTube user wuzzlevideos, who has an arseload of old road safety PIFs and I'll be profiling some of them here.

So, if the mid - '90s anti speeding films Don't Look Now and Funeral Blues (http://takingthepif.blogspot.com/2007/04/funeral-bluesdont-look-now.html) weren't enough to convince Britain's boy racers to hit the brakes, this 1997 follow up should have ensured the message was received. With thanks to the aforementioned wuzzlevideos, you can see it here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QOnF8citByU. The Think! website says of the campaign:

'Procedures'
£3.5m TV and radio campaign - September/October 1997

Creative treatment

Continuing the home video theme, a 60s commercial uses new footage of children who were subsequently killed by speeding motorists in urban areas. A voice-over explains some of the procedures police officers should follow when breaking news of a death to the family of a road accident victim. Advertising carried the endline 'So please let's all slow down' 'Kill your speed'. Three 10s silent versions show a still image of a child followed by the captions. Family members again talk about the loss of their child in radio commercials and ask drivers to slow down.

And if you were thinking of joining the old bill but road fatalities aren't your area of expertise, here's how the pros do it:

"All officers delivering the message must appreciate the implications of their task. News of the death should be broken with compassion and tact by the officer, without the use of jargon. Great care must be taken in the use of language; for the families, the word 'accident' is in many cases totally inappropriate. Property should not be returned in a distasteful condition, and consideration should be given to having it professionally cleaned. Given the often appalling injuries sustained by the victims, officers may choose to advise family members not to view the body. However, the long term importance of saying 'goodbye' is well documented."

Again, we've got the endline "So please, let's all slow down" and the "Kill your speed" hand logo.

Look out for review of full - length The Finishing Line up next, probably tonight but might be tomorrow.