1. "THE POWER OF OKAY" // SEE ME SCOTLAND
"The Power of Okay" is best when seen off-guard. The ad is structured to make you, the viewer, feel mounting anxiety alongside the narrator, making the final, unexpected question "are you OK?" hit you like a brick. This ad from See Me, the Scottish mental health organization, stands out for how compelling and effective it is with its "gotcha" finale.
2. "NOT MYSELF TODAY" // PARTNERS FOR MENTAL HEALTH
Not Myself Today is a campaign from Canadian charity Partners for Mental Health that works to end mental health stigmatization in the workplace. Their television advertisement, depicting a woman hearing a coworker crying in the bathroom, almost helping, then ultimately walking away, is so good for how realistic the advertisement is (and not even just in the workplace).
3. "DEPRESSION" // HEALTH BOARD PROMOTION SINGAPORE
The Health Promotion Board in Singapore has several different mental health de-stigmatization campaigns, but their campaign to help people better understand what it’s like to have depression is one of their most popular. The ad shows run-of-the-mill responses to typical questions about how we’re doing, such as "It’s nothing," but interlaced with a hidden message of "It’s [hopeless, and I’m good for] nothing."
4. "THE STAND UP KID" // TIME TO CHANGE UK
Time To Change UK’s main aim is to end mental health discrimination, and their ad The Stand Up Kid portrays the stigma young people experience when they speak out about their mental health issues.
5. "HEALTHY MINDS ANTI-STIGMA" // HEALTHY MINDS CANADA
This ad from Healthy Minds Canada does a brilliant job at framing how disrespectfully most people treat mental illness.