RAF: “The Force Protecting Space”

A little known aspect of the Royal Air Force’s remit, the emerging field of space protection, is highlighted in a dramatic new recruitment campaign by the creative collective House 337.

The campaign aims to make young people aware that there are a wide range of professions that can be pursued within the RAF – all of them playing a vital role in forming the team that protects us from unexpected threats.

House 337’s epic 60-second film entitled “The Force Protecting Space” goes live on Saturday 8 July during the much-anticipated Formula 1 international racing competition and runs for three months. It features real personnel throughout and a visual rawness that conveys the excitement and energy of a career in the RAF – especially given its emerging role in space defence.

Alongside the TV, OLV, and Digital running in the UK, House 337 has created striking OOH and social creative that invites people to discover more about “the force protecting space”, using a dramatic art direction style in the RAF colours of red and blue to continue the cinematic, almost futuristic, aesthetic.

The hero film opens on a scene that could have come straight out of a tense blockbuster thriller – a high-tech control room where a team monitors the UK’s assets in space. Their leader is conveying urgent information to her other team members about a potential satellite collision with space debris.

We then see how the rest of the RAF deal with their own high-pressured situations. From the logistics teams on the ground loading up humanitarian aid, to the medics monitoring a pilot fitness test, to the chefs who feed them all, along with the pilots themselves flying a time sensitive mission. All of these stories unfold to the overarching sound of a countdown, as the time is running out for Space Command to avert a potential collision.

Their skills and backgrounds are diverse, but everyone on the force has the satisfaction of knowing they’re part of a team responsible for keeping vital services online. This is demonstrated at the dramatic climax of the ad, where RAF jets clear the airspace, and the leader in Space Command successfully moves a satellite away from a potential collision.

“It takes the whole force to protect space,” the voiceover says. “Join us,”. Viewers are then urged to find their force by searching RAF recruitment.