Lost Highway Films Share Danionulls Song

Lost Highway Films Share Danion's Song

For the past couple of years, NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital has been producing heart-wrenching and inspiring campaigns highlighting the stories of real patients. Shot in stark black and white, the films are unscripted testimonials by people with emotional tales to tell, extolling the virtues of the hospital and its caring staff. However, in their latest commercial in the campaign it is not a testimonial but an endearing performance by a young boy named Danion Jones that has touched the heart of viewers.

Directed by Peter Rabot, director at Lost Highway Films and CD/partner at Munn Rabot, the commercial presents Danion, a 6-year-old boy suffering from a life-threatening tumor, singing 'When You're Smiling' by Larry Shay, Mark Fisher, and Joe Goodwin, made famous by Louis Armstrong. . Throughout the film, cards emerge explaining to the audience how surgery at the hospital was successful in removing most of the tumor, giving Danion four years he would have never had. As the final cards reveal, a few months after Danion was shot singing his heart out for the camera, he tragically passed away.

We spoke to Lost Highway Executive Producer Marc Rosenberg and the spot's Director and CD Peter Rabot about how they brought the heart-breaking tale to the screen.

Marc Rosenberg (left) and Peter Rabot (right)

The campaign is a remarkably powerful piece of filmmaking. How did you get involved and did you have any worries in bringing such a poignant topic to the screen?

Marc Rosenberg – The campaign was created by Peter Rabot, director at Lost Highway Films, and CD/partner at Munn Rabot Advertising. I had worked with Peter on previous campaigns for NY Tourism and GHI Healthcare. Peter has always thought of ways to make his messages provocative and to evoke effective responses from the audience. I had no worries about this campaign. It's always exciting to be a part of innovation as it breaks boundaries.

Peter Rabot – Munn Rabot has been working as the agency-of-record for New York-Presbyterian for nearly 15 years. The campaign "Amazing Things Are Happening" was presented to hospital leadership three years ago. The campaign's hallmark is its authenticity. We aim to tell an honest and heartfelt story every time we produce new content.

Nobody wants to get sick, and nobody wants to go to the hospital. So the natural human response is to actively avoid hospital advertising. We needed to find a way to break through that barrier and engage people like never before.

I was not worried about presenting Danion's story. The first commercial, which never aired, showed him living a full life. When Danion's condition became insurmountable, and resulted in his passing, we wanted to do something wonderful with the footage we had shot. We went back into the edit room to recut the spot, and tell a different story. Danion and his mother got four wonderful years together. Time they would not otherwise have had if they had not gone to New York-Presbyterian. Danion's mother, Leah Grant, and the hospital were fully supportive of this effort.

When did you first meet Danion? How was he chosen as the subject for the piece?

Peter Rabot – The hospital brought his case to our attention, and we were asked to meet with Danion. My creative partner John Stingley and I went to meet Danion and his mother at their home in Newark, NJ. As a six year-old, he wasn't really interested in talking specifics about his medical condition. As he got more comfortable with us, he began to sing a Justin Bieber song he performed at the Apollo Theater, in Harlem. It dawned on me that maybe we should just have him sing, and use the supers/cards to tell his medical story. Due to licensing costs we could never afford to air the Bieber song. In the end we selected 'When You're Smiling' by Louis Armstrong. We had to teach Danion the song. He learned it very quickly, and I'm told he enjoyed singing it.
 

The film shows Danion in a bare setting and features nothing but the image and sound of him singing and a series of compelling information cards. When was the choice made to have such a stark presentation and how was that decision made?

Marc Rosenberg – Peter's idea was to create an environment where the patient and story were the focus. He collaborated closely with his DOP, Maryse Alberti, in creating the minimal, but highly dramatic environment. The concept was to keep the viewer's attention on the storyteller and not be distracted by superfluous elements. This also contributed to the intense effect of each story's emotional weight.

Peter Rabot – I wanted the set to be uncluttered and simple so that the viewer could focus on the person speaking. I wanted the patient to provide the emotion, and the cards to tell the medical story. We were fortunate to have the amazing Maryse Alberti, the DOP best known for her work on 'The Wrestler'. Through her brilliant use of lighting and composition, Maryse brought an elegant authenticity to the campaign.

What was the shoot itself like? Was there anyone not in floods of tears at any point?

Marc Rosenberg – The shoot was orchestrated as a closed set. Only key crew, agency and clients were allowed in close proximity to the talent. The idea was to make the patients comfortable so they wouldn't be intimidated or distracted by too many people and production activity. Creating that secure environment was a key element to our success. Needless to say, everyone present was deeply affected by these moving anecdotes.

Peter Rabot – We have to make sure the patients are comfortable when they arrive on set. None of them have ever sat in front of the camera before, so they are of course a little nervous. From time to time people did become emotional, but Lost Highway Films production staff had plenty of tissues to go around.
 

The film manages to be both heart-breaking and heart-warming at the same time. How did you achieve the tone?

Marc Rosenberg – Peter and his creative partner successfully created a relaxed rapport and bond with the patients. They carefully chose questions to prompt honest and heart felt responses about what each patient had experienced. There was a sense of trust and faith that flowed both ways, resulting in open and candid interviews.

Was it always considered that the news of Danion's passing would be mentioned on-screen, or was that something that had to be considered when the tragic day came?

Marc Rosenberg – The intention was to complete and air these spots with the expectation that Danion would live. When we heard of his passing, the spot was cancelled. But through conversations that ensued between Peter, the hospital and Danion's mother, there was a sense of incompletion. Danion's mother urged everyone to finish the spot as a celebration of Danion's life, his hope and courage in the face of this terrible illness. Peter and NYPH were excited about honoring this small warrior for all that he had been through and his continuous drive to beat the odds. As a result, the spot was finished and aired. There's a digital companion piece that Peter finished as well that lives on the NYPH website and ours www.losthighwayfilms.com under "digital content" navigation tab. This wonderful piece features Danion's mother talking about her son and his ordeal.

Peter Rabot – The spot was created to celebrate the positive outcome of Danion's treatments. His condition deteriorated unexpectedly a few months after filming. When he passed, we thought about the possibility of re-editing his footage to tell a different story, and that is the story that eventually aired.
 

What has the reaction to the film been like?

Marc Rosenberg – The response has been very empowering. Industry peers and the audience have hailed this piece of advertising for inspiring hope, compassion and faith in healing and developing cures against these debilitating afflictions. The spot has been heralded as being humble yet very powerful as an advertising tool with an essential message.

Peter Rabot – I've never created a single piece of work that has received the attention that this has. People feel the communication is honest, and because of that, they respond to it favorably. The commercial is completely different from what people expect, and some find it difficult to handle, emotionally. Overall, however, I think they respect the fact that NewYork-Presbyterian not only presents stories with happy endings, but also has the guts to present a story like this. The message here is that the hospital will continue to do everything it can to find new ways to help children like Danion.

Are you doing any more work for the NewYork-Presbyterian? Would you like to be involved further?

Marc Rosenberg – We recently finished shooting another round of NYPH spots for "Amazing Things Are Happening". Those will be airing shortly. I have a long history with Munn Rabot and NYPH. Lost Highway Films hopes to continue as a collaborator in their quest to produce strategic and successful advertising that informs and educates the viewing public about healthcare.

Posted on 22nd April 2013