Translation Taps Coffee Bluff Pictures for Ad Council's Firearm Injury Prevention Campaign
The Ad Council is launching a new phase of the award-winning “Agree to Agree” youth firearm injury prevention initiative, including new PSAs from Translation that spotlight the lifesaving work of community violence intervention (CVI).
As gun violence continues to be one of the most devastating issues affecting children and teens across the country, this new effort shines a light on the work and impact of CVI occurring in cities across the country to promote peace, seed hope and stop cycles of violence. As part of the “Agree to Agree” campaign, which aims to address the full spectrum of the impact of firearm injury on children and teens, this next phase includes new PSAs, a short documentary and additional resources to help the public understand CVI and its impact on preventing gun violence.
CVI prevents violence by deploying coordinated, community-driven strategies led by trained, trusted individuals known as credible messengers. These individuals leverage deep relationships and lived experiences to mediate conflict, interrupt cycles of retaliation and connect people to critical support such as counseling, job opportunities and mentorship.
"We can all agree that everyone deserves to be safe and have the opportunity to thrive, yet too many communities continue to experience the devastating impacts of gun violence," said Michelle Hillman, chief campaign and program officer, the Ad Council. "Through this campaign, we’re shining a light on community violence intervention and its role in helping prevent violence before it happens. It’s an honor to help bring greater visibility, understanding and national scale to the people and strategies making a difference every day."
The PSAs are built around the insight that audiences rarely see the lifesaving interactions that prevent violence. Created by Translation with a human-centered storytelling approach, the PSAs – “Community Safety,” “Breathe,” “Footprints” and “Takes a Village” – draw on the real-world experiences of CVI professionals to depict critical moments of intervention in action. Through scenes of powerful firsthand conversations with trained credible messengers, viewers can step into the experience of how CVI practitioners engage with individuals to deescalate potential conflicts, build trust, and break cycles of violence. The PSAs will run in donated media, including television, digital, social and out-of-home placements nationally and with a focus on cities where CVI is most active. Spark Foundry, a pro bono partner on the “Agree to Agree” campaign since April 2025, will provide media support to extend its impact.
"In a time scarred by violence — directly in our communities and across the country — we all could use a reminder that there are peacemakers among us. We believe the most powerful stories make the invisible unmissable, and that’s what we’ve attempted to do with the CVI practitioners doing the hard work of de-escalation, changing outcomes thanks to their credibility and commitment." says Translation CMO, Chaucer Barnes. "This campaign is about giving these violence interrupters a pedestal, not only to highlight their work in the communities where they are active, but to applaud an entire practice of work that so rarely gets the praise it deserves."
As homicides have declined in many cities across the country, reaching notable lows in 2025, community violence intervention has been part of that progress. Yet this work often remains unseen, with limited public awareness of CVI’s role in advancing safety and strengthening communities.
“At the HAVI, we believe violence is not inevitable—it is preventable. Across the country, survivors, violence intervention workers, hospital and community leaders are demonstrating what’s possible when we invest in healing, partnership and innovative solutions to our national crisis,” said Fatimah Loren Dreier, executive director of Health Alliance for Violence Intervention and Kaiser Permanente Center for Gun Violence Research and Education. “The 'Agree to Agree' campaign elevates the voices of peacemakers, credible messengers, and violence intervention specialists transforming lives and building safer communities — it is a reminder that those closest to the challenge are often closest to the solution."
The campaign extends beyond the PSAs to include a short documentary film, introducing audiences to CVI and the practitioners working across the country to keep their communities safe. Directed by award-winning filmmaker Deborah Riley Draper and produced by Atlanta-based production company Coffee Bluff Pictures, “Where Peace Lives: Building Safe Communities” provides an overview of CVI and allows viewers to hear from leaders who are working to prevent violence and promote healing. The documentary is available to watch for free on the “Agree to Agree” website.
“As a documentary filmmaker, it is a profound privilege to sit with community heroes willing to let you witness them in their element, sharing their truths and vulnerabilities with authenticity and courage. CVI trusted messengers have rarely been centered, named or made visible as a professional community, even though their work quietly holds communities together,” said Draper.“ It was an honor to help share their stories, amplify both their impact and their struggle, and invite the public to truly see the unsung people who prevent violence and build safer cities every day."
All campaign materials direct audiences to AgreetoAgree.org/Safety where visitors engage with informative resources, watch the PSAs and documentary and learn more about these lifesaving, community-led safety efforts. The full suite of assets was developed with the input and expertise of CVI leaders and practitioners from across the country to ensure the campaign is grounded in the strategies and lived experiences of CVI professionals and the communities they serve. Together, the campaign resources allow the public multiple opportunities to better understand CVI and the role it has in keeping our communities safe.
“When I started this work in the early 1990s, there was no field, no name, no industry, just a few of us who refused to let our young people be killed, and today that has grown into a whole profession of credible messengers showing up as the right person, in the right place, at the right time. The world needs to see us clearly, learn our work and stand with us, because community violence intervention does not just stop violence, it grows peace, and the best of this work is still ahead,” said Erica Ford, the Peace Doctor and Founder of LIFE Camp.
“Agree to Agree” is an Ad Council initiative that builds from a place of common ground to address the impact of firearm injuries on children and teens across all communities in the U.S. Rooted in the idea that firearm injuries should not be the leading cause of death for children and teens, the initiative is funded by a coalition of hospital, health care and brand leaders.
For more information about community violence intervention and its role in building safer communities, visit AgreeToAgree.org/Safety.
CREDITS
CAMPAIGN: Agree to Agree
CAMPAIGN TITLE: Community Safety, Breathe, Footprints, Takes a Village
CLIENT(S): The Ad Council
AGENCY: Translation
- Steve Stoute - Founder & CEO
- Chaucer Barnes - Chief Marketing Officer
- Jonathan Akwue - President
- Beto Fernandez - Chief Creative Officer
- Mina Mikhael - Executive Creative Director
- Steve Horn - Executive Creative Director
- Roger Hoard - Group Creative Director
- Tiffany Scurlark - Creative Director, Copy
- Rob Lewis - Associate Creative Director, Art
- Amiri Rose - Associate Creative Director, Copy
- Hailey Boerema - Associate Creative Director, Art
- Kamiin Valree - Art Director
- Sandra Tsang - Art Director
- Kofi Lost - Copywriter
- Alison Hill - Head of Production
- Kristen Wiggs - Producer
- Dayo Ajayi - Group Business Director
- Sophie van Geldermalsen - Group Program Director
- Kaileigh Woodruff - Business Director
- Megan Mundo - Strategy Director
- Rob Hiter Jr. - Director of Data Strategy
- Stesha Moore - Senior Program Manager
- Meghan Weale - Program Manager
- Joel Rodriguez - Head of Context Planning
- Zach Brown - Senior Director of Content Planning
- Emerald Grippa - Senior Context Planner
- Sam Cantie - Junior Context Planner
- David Miller - Associate Context Planner
- Michelle Fink - Executive Business Affairs Manager
PRODUCTION COMPANY: 16Bars
- Kevin Wilson, Jr. - Director
- Janie Penney - Executive Producer
- Leo DiSantis - Producer
- Ariel Williams - Line Producer
- Josiah Spencer - Editor
- Auudi Dorsey - Illustrator
COLOR: Company3
- Kath Raisch - Colorist
- Brendan Mills - Producer
CREATIVE CREDITS
CAMPAIGN: Agree to Agree
CAMPAIGN TITLE: Where Peace Lives: Building Safe Communities
CLIENT(S): The Ad Council
AGENCY: Coffee Bluff Pictures
- Deborah Riley Draper - Writer/Director
- Jarobi Moorhead - Producer
- Nathan Bowhall - Editor
- Jonathan Hall - Cinematographer
