Building on the success of last year’s Winter Fundraising Appeal, Bring Someone’s Future Back, Samaritans and creative agency Don’t Panic continue their three-year strategic and creative partnership with the launch of a new integrated legacy campaign, Let Your Will Do The Talking.
The campaign explores the deeply personal motivations behind leaving a gift in a Will, positioning legacy giving as both a reflection on a life lived and an expression of the values, people and moments that have shaped it.
Let Your Will Do The Talking is both a call to action and an invitation: encouraging supporters to find the words for what matters most to them, and to consider the difference their values could continue to make long into the future.
At the heart of the campaign is a powerful human truth that connects the subject of legacy giving with Samaritans’ wider purpose - the things that matter most profoundly can often be the hardest to put into words.
For those who choose to leave a gift to Samaritans in their Will, the campaign presents a lasting expression of that belief. Their legacy can help create a future in which anyone experiencing suicidal feelings is able to find the human connection that could save their life.
In doing so, Let Your Will Do The Talking brings Samaritans’ refreshed brand proposition to its legacy audience. Values-led and inherently future-focused, the campaign is an expression of the charity’s purpose - preventing suicide through the power of human connection, while supporting Samaritans’ wider ambitions for the brand.
The integrated campaign runs across TV, paid social and direct mail, designed both to inspire new legacy consideration and engage Samaritans’ existing supporter audience.
The hero film, The Right Words, is rooted in reflection, recognition and emotional truth. Rather than treating legacy giving as an abstract financial decision, it focuses on the intimate details through which a life is understood - the relationships, memories, choices and values that become part of someone’s story.
Created to feel authentic to its audience, the film draws on familiar, deeply personal moments to invite viewers to reflect on their own lives and what they might want to carry forward. The result is a quiet and human portrayal of legacy - not simply as something left behind, but as a way for what matters to us to continue speaking after we are gone.
Sonya Trivedy, Executive Director of Engagement at Samaritans, said: “With one in four of us experiencing suicidal thoughts in our lifetime, we are all likely to know someone who will struggle and need somewhere to turn to. This new legacy film powerfully brings home that message and highlights how Samaritans is a life-saving service, answering a call for help every 10 seconds and ensuring that no one has to face their darkest moments alone. As a charity that relies on the public’s kind donations, leaving gifts in wills can help us be there for more people when they need us the most and bring their future back.”
Zara Bennett, Senior Creative at Don’t Panic London, said: “Building on the important work from last year has been a real privilege. Legacy campaigns shouldn't underestimate their audience - the lives of this generation have been rich in experiences, love and friendship. We wanted to acknowledge that in a way that feels genuine, giving the history between two old friends the space to speak for itself.”
The film was created in partnership with Greg Hackett of Park Pictures. “The conversations that matter most are often unexpected, awkward, and hard to have. Where you don’t quite know how to start it, or where to look when they do.
I wanted to honour that by stripping everything back and just letting the conversation simply happen. No manipulation in the cut, just two people finding their way through something profound in the most human way possible, captured in a single unbroken take.
Samaritans do such important work and I wanted to capture something that felt real. I hope it lands with the people who can make an impact on the cause the most.”
CREDITS
CLIENT - Samaritans
Assistant Director Of Supporter Engagement - Alex Talcer
Assistant Director of External Communications - Annabel Davis
Head of Legacy - Amelie Duggan
Creative Services Lead - Amanda Shipp
Legacy & In Memory Marketing Officer - Claire Eaglestone
Legacy & In Memory Marketing Officer - Mhari Price
Project Manager: Marnie Hall
Video Producer - Micha Hilliard
AGENCY - Don't Panic @dontpanicldn
Founder: Joe Wade
Client and Commercial Partner: Jane Marshall
Creative Director - George McCallum
Lead Creative - Zara Bennett
Senior Creatives: Lara Baxter & Ada Rose
Executive Producer - Chloe Shaw
Executive Producer - Jenn Houlihan
Head of Client Services: Georgia Williams
Senior Account Director - Alex Tilley
Strategy Director: Michelle Dennis
PRODUCTION - Park Pictures
Director - Greg Hackett
Executive Producer - Fran Thompson
Producer - Joe Browne
Production Manager - Embla Conneely
Production Assistant - Alex Howie
1st AD - Clara Paris
2nd AD - Dan Hasson
Runner - Imi Laurence
Runner - Louis Morris
Runner - Constantin Barisone
Director of Photography - Alex Barber
1st AC - James Smith
2nd AC - Pippa Jones
DIT - Elvin Prentice
Key Grip - Pete Olney
Sound - Greg Hagen
VTR - Robbie Ross
Production Designer - Sam Tidman
Props - Louis Ruscombe King
Props - George Hertzog Young
Construction - Jasper Allen
Gaffer - Lee Wilson
Spark - Niko Kalimerakis
Spark - Phil Penfold
Stylist - Sophie O’Neill
Stylist Assistant - Beth Bilcliffe
Make-Up Artist - Sara Bowden
Casting Director - Julia Gilmour
Medic - Brandon Austin
EDIT - TenThree
Editor - Billy Meade
Post / Grade - Company3 / Simon Bourne
Senior Music Supervisor: Harley Beckman Hawksley
Music: Wake the Town
Composer: James Joshua Otto
SOUND STUDIO - Sounds Good @soundsgood.io
Sound Design - Martin Leitner @martyleitner
Talent - Paul Clayton
Talent - Pete Picton
