Heart Foundation: Know your pulse. Know your whakapapa. - 30" Whakairo.

Atrial Fibrillation (AF) is a condition which causes an irregular and often rapid heart rate. If the condition is not diagnosed it can lead to stroke and heart failure. With AF disproportionally affecting Māori and Pasifika, the Heart Foundation needed a campaign that harnessed cultural and community insights to drive awareness and early detection within these priority populations via pulse checks.

The “Know Your Pulse. Know your Whakapapa” campaign via dentsu, is told through the lens of whakairo via revered Carver, James Rickard, and through Pacific drumming via Choreographer, Kura Taruia. Both executions embrace the rhythmic beat prevalent in Māori and Pacific culture and storytelling.

As AF is a condition that can affect both young and old, the campaign spreads across many touchpoints, from engaging with GPs on the ground and getting into workplaces, to more traditional media. A younger audience is also targeted via social, and some exciting community activations which are in the works.