Parkinson’s NSW: No Escape Room

With five Australians under 40 diagnosed with Parkinson’s every day, Parkinson’s NSW has launched the first-ever ‘No Escape Room’ to simulate what life is like for people living with the disease. The one-of-a-kind experience, created by Wunderman Thompson Australia and Airbag, started with a callout via Facebook to Australia’s biggest escape room enthusiasts, with the opportunity to be the first people to trial a new escape room. What the participants didn’t know was that they were taking part in an experiment to dramatise the everyday challenges of people living with Parkinson’s. Taking three days to construct, including building multiple hidden cameras into the structure, the room was designed to help participants understand Parkinson’s symptoms through a series of puzzles inspired by everyday tasks such as tying a shoelace, pouring tea and using a computer mouse. Each one was rigged to simulate how Parkinson’s symptoms – such as loss of memory, physical tremors, stiffness, confusion, difficulty multi-tasking and blurred vision – impact a person’s ability to complete everyday movements and tasks. The campaign is brought to life with an interactive digital version of the No Escape Room and a related online video, together with allowing more people to experience the daily challenges faced by people with Parkinson’s and help to shift the common misconception that it is a disease of the elderly. The site simulates the feeling of being inside the escape room via a 360 experience, with each challenge replicated for the users to attempt.

Credits
Brand: Parkinson’s NSW
Campaign: No Escape Room
Advertising Agency: Wunderman Thompson, Sydney, Australia
Production: Airbag
Pr: Bcw
Sound Studio: Song Zu
National Chief Creative Officer: Simon Langley
Creative Group Head: Steve Hey
Senior Art Director: Simon Koay
Partner: Ana Lynch
Engagement Manager: Rebekah O’Grady
Senior Producer: Gabe Hammond
Integrated Producer: Chloe Marshall
Editor: Kel Gronow
Creative Director: Frank Martelli
Marvin Cheung: Senior UI Designer
Delivery Lead: Ryville Ochoa
Senior Developer: Joseph Campbell
UI Designer: Koji Yajima