The NSPCC has teamed up with Aardman and OMD UK to launch a brand new animation ‘Pantosaurus’ in cinemas across the UK to get parents talking to their children about sexual abuse.
A 2-minute short, made by Aardman, creators of much-loved characters like Morph, Wallace & Gromit and Shaun the Sheep, enlists the help of dinosaurs to explain how to stay safe from abuse. Starting from today, this campaign coincides with the summer holidays, reaching families at one of the busiest times of the year in cinemas.
In addition, OMD UK has brokered a partnership with AOL to distribute the video, targeting parents on premium platforms. Facebook and YouTube will reach parents and children on shared platforms to support the campaign.
Peter Wanless, CEO of the NSPCC said: “We know many parents will struggle with the idea of talking to their children about sexual abuse but it’s vital if we want our children to understand how to stay safe. Parents know it’s an important conversation to have but don’t always know how to go about it. We hope our new child-friendly and catchy animation will act as a conversation starter helping parents to address the topic of sexual abuse without using scary words or even mentioning sex.”
Heather Wright, Executive Producer at Aardman said; “Humour, animation and music are a great way of making it less awkward for parents and young children to talk about this very difficult subject. The song has definite ‘earworm’ potential and I’m sure children will find it funny and memorable which will, in turn, give them the language they need to use to protect themselves.”
The film is aimed at four to eight-year-olds as part of the NSPCC’s PANTS campaign, which has already helped over 400,000 parents talk to their children about sexual abuse since it launched three years ago. It has also led to one conviction and a number of other disclosures of abuse from children.
