Creatives Ben Pfutzenreuter and Pat Davis teamed up with Marcus Lof on a project called ‘Concepting With Convicts’.
Brief: Help Amnesty International speak truth.
Roles: Convict served as copywriter.
We provided art direction.
Notes: The inmate was concerned that criticizing law enforcement would garner him unwanted attention from corrections officers while serving his sentence.
Brief: Show folks why they need a safe.
Roles: Convict served as art director.
We provided copy.
Notes: Inmate informed us that a heavy safe was a serious deterrent to the average home invader, who looks to grab as much as they can, as fast as they can.
Brief: Keep kids in school.
Roles: Convict served as copywriter.
We provided art direction.
Notes: Inmate attained his GED while in prison.
Brief: Make Cadillac even cooler.
Role
s: Convict served as copywriter.
We provided art direction.
Notes: Inmate is not serving time for larceny.
Brief: Sell tattoo removal to ex-cons.
Roles: Convict served as copywriter.
We provided art direction.
Notes: The writer has administered a tattoo before.
Brief: LoJack never lets up the search
Roles: Convict served as art director.
We provided copy.
Notes: We’re told LoJack is pretty easy to circumvent.
To give convicts a second chance in life—and to prove that a “good idea can come from anywhere”—creatives Ben Pfutzenreuter and Pat Davis teamed up with Marcus Lof on a project called ‘Concepting With Convicts’.
Together, they worked with prison inmates to create actual ad campaigns for brands. They would send out traditional ad briefs to the convicts, and the inmates could choose to work as either the copywriter or art director for the piece.
Using the prison pen pal system, they searched for inmates who were interested in pursuing their creative dreams. “We realized that if we could contact convicts themselves, maybe we could also show them that their creative talents can translate into a real career on the outside,” Davis told PSFK.
