Now, more than ever, we need to Stir the Soul

I’ve just come out of an edit.

We made two versions of the film. One based on tight, well-written script, which had been carefully crafted and approved by agency and client.

The other based on an unscripted conversation, captured in the last half hour of the shoot.

I probably don’t have to tell you which was the most powerful.

The words that fell unscripted out of real experiences had way more depth and feeling than anything even the best of copywriters could have conceived.

It doesn’t mean that the original script was wrong. Far from it. It was very right. But those raw, imperfect, occasionally stumbled sentences landed in a way that couldn’t have been written. Not least because they’d never been said out-loud before.

Unscripted, of course, is pretty unscientific. And catching it on the fly at the end of a shoot isn’t necessarily something I’d recommend. But truth told in compelling, authentic and unexpected ways can move people like nothing else.

And moving people is what we at GOOD aim to do. With everything we do.

Because in many ways, we’re in the business of feelings. That’s what we sell. Our clients are charities, causes, and organisations that have a strong purpose. Some have products to shift. Most don’t. But all know that if they want people do something, they have to make them feel something.

They have to Stir The Soul.

The capacity to Stir The Soul is something we try and build into every piece of creative work at GOOD. We use it as a measure. A way to judge and evaluate what we do.

Does it make me feel something? Does it move me? Does it make me want to act? To buy something? Or buy into something?

It’s much more than a catchy line. It’s an approach that holds us accountable. Because we know that if we stir something within our audiences, then it drives action and effectiveness for our clients. If we don’t, there are consequences. Real life ones for real life people.

So, as we move even further into an Age of Artificial (News, People, Intelligence…) it’s worth reminding ourselves that authentic experiences are as persuasive and powerful a tool as we’re ever likely to have.

That’s why the captured, true words in that second edit hit so hard and moved so much.

And why now, more than ever, we need to Stir The Soul.