WATCH What happens when parents tell lies

‘When Parents Tell Lies’, an online film created by JWT Vietnam for Abbott’s Ensure adult nutrition drink, tells the stories of stoic Vietnamese parents who made tough sacrifices for their families.The close to three minute tear jerker includes stories of the doting mother who serves the choice food to her kids while she picks at the left overs; the sick mom who hides her illness from her child amongst others.Take a look:http://youtu.be/fvKBuqbU1w4This film is part of a broader activation campaign that was launched to encourage adult Vietnamese to repay the love of their aging parents with a gift of health with Ensure.Leveraging unique truths of Vietnamese life and its dominant cultural theme of filial piety, JWT Vietnam created an activation program comprising of digital, on-ground and PR designed to disrupt the category and drive sales. The integrated campaign, which was conceptualised and managed by JWTPR and kicked off with the launch of the film in September.The film also directs consumers to a microsite where they can record a personal message in their own voice for their parents, and send a ‘Gift of Love’ box of Ensure, a powdered drink for people over 50 that provides the nutrients and supplements they need to maintain an active lifestyle. The site included other features, including a ‘family dating’ column that encourages adult children to spend more time with their folks, and professional advice on how caregivers could take better care of their aging parents.“Filial piety takes on a whole new tenor in a nation like Vietnam, which is changing fast but is still very much a developing country. A generation of Vietnamese undertook untold hardships to give their children a better life, while gracefully hiding the pain within,” said Saby Mishra, CEO of JWT Vietnam.“Today’s upwardly-mobile Vietnamese have an innate desire to reciprocate, but they often get caught up in their busy, modern lives. We wanted to position Ensure as a brand that can resolve that tension, with a clear message and strong call to action,” Mishra added.JWT claims that the online video has garnered more than 921,200 views and has sparked an intense online conversation in the nation of 90 million consumers, generating print and online news coverage, as well as posts from Vietnamese celebrities, on the subject and the brand. Sales of Ensure have jumped over 20% since the campaign launched.