Take Back PNG

Building a brighter future for Papua New Guinea

There was a need to shift public perception on the significance of taxes and their importance in fostering a self-reliant nation.

The Problem

Papua New Guinea (PNG) is a country with a rich cultural diversity of over 300 tribes and communities, and a population of approximately 9 million people. The government depends heavily on taxes to finance public services and infrastructure. Unfortunately, the country suffers from low tax compliance, attributable to a widespread lack of awareness and understanding of the tax system, resulting in substantial loss of revenue for the government. In 2021, Helicopter Creative was appointed by ABT to develop a country-wide awareness campaign in PNG aimed at changing societal attitudes toward taxation to improve voluntary compliance and mobilise tax revenue. Helicopter was responsible for all aspects of the campaign development: strategy; creative development; script development; storyboarding; art direction; copywriting; animation; editing; design; final artwork for print; and the communication plan for implementation. The campaign was delivered through multiple channels: TV, Radio, Outdoor, Print, and Social Media.

Our challenge was to develop 
a clear strategy that would resonate with the diverse population of Papua New Guinea and inspire tax compliance.

The Development

During our discovery process through a series of workshops with the IRC and representatives from the Australian Tax Office and ABT, we drew out valuable insights to gain a deeper understanding of the problem. This led to a clear communication strategy that laid the platform for the creation and development of a multi-channel campaign in support. National self-reliance is a long-standing core ambition of PNG, combined with the Papuan’s immense sense of pride for their country, laid the strategic foundations for the campaign development. Critical aspects of the campaign were the need for simplicity and clarity of message, building a narrative around why it is essential to pay taxes, the benefits of paying taxes and building a brighter future for all Papua New Guineans. Education was also crucial, with a need to have a series of supporting bi-lingual toolkits made available online and printed for distribution.

Colour was used to help visually illustrate the benefits of paying tax and ultimately connect the importance of paying tax to a brighter future for Papua New Guineans.

The Solution

The TVC was created using Stop-frame animation, with every single asset hand-made from paper and filmed one frame at a time. This process proved relatively cost-effective, as we also developed an incredible range of visual assets during the filming that were repurposed across other executions.

Supporting collateral was needed to help reinforce the message and create a variety of talking points for the public.

The Rollout

The visual assets created for the stop-frame animation TVC were integral to extending the campaign’s reach and impact across various media platforms, helping to deepen the understanding of the benefits of paying tax among the people of Papua New Guinea. The handcrafted, paper-based aesthetic provided a consistent and memorable visual identity that seamlessly translated into print, social, digital, and outdoor media. These assets enriched the campaign by maintaining a unified look and feel, while the adaptability of the visuals ensured the message was accessible to a wide audience. By repurposing these unique elements across different formats, the campaign successfully reinforced its core narrative, creating a cohesive and engaging experience that resonated across multiple touchpoints.

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