AT&T’s chilling public service announcement discourages distracting driving by telling a simple story with a simple message: It can wait.
The film is called “The Unseen” and it echoes the message of AT&T’s previous anti-distracted driving film called “Close to Home.” A snapshot of suburban small town life familiar to many American families, “The Unseen” starts with a cheery mood that sets a foreboding scene, eerie and almost thriller like.
The video’s main character is a likewise “relatable” figure who embodies the whirlwind of children, family obligations, and pressing time restraints. He doesn’t do anything but care for his family; in many ways the audience will struggle to dislike him, even though he makes a fatefully fatal decision. By spending such a high percentage of the video developing a character, AT&T shows us how deeply affected all aspects of his life will be by this split second distraction.
The video pays attention to small gestures and subtle moments. Attention to detail not only develops the suspense of the video, but also hints to a question posed by the video: who are we when we are alone? What little things do we do differently when the lights are off? This line of question moves us past the already dark message of the video and whispers something more sinister. When it is just us and our phones, do we forget the consequences of our actions on the outside world? We would argue that this video goes beyond asking us to make better choices; it asks us to ignore our impulses, and remember that we are never truly alone.
However, AT&T’s video is not without promise. The website encourages visitors to participate in a distracted driving simulation, to sign a pledge against texting and driving, and to immerse in a 360-degree simulation that shows the real consequences of looking at your phone while driving. Scare tactics aside, the video’s emotional impact is substantial. Viewers will carry the feelings aroused by the video with them as a reminder that texting can wait; speaking out against distracted driving cannot.
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