This is the Journey is a beautiful, powerful ad from Alo House, from a recovering addict to those who are still suffering from addiction. Via Adweek:
Created by agency Paradam—who name, interestingly enough, means “an object which reveals itself only to those that know how to see it”—the resulting short film, titled “This Is the Journey,” follows a young man through the silent struggle of going clean. What resonates is how it well it transfers the itchy, abject listlessness of rebuilding yourself from the ground up.
The film is narrated by recovered heroin addict Bob Forrest of Thelonious Monster. Alo House’s founder, Evan Haines, is also a former addict. So, what’s striking about “This Is the Journey” is that it’s told from the perspective of experience: While it doesn’t speak to everyone, the people it wants to address—addicts, but also their families—will feel the message profoundly, creating a “paradam” in and of itself.
Speaking to Adweek about founding Alo House, Haines mentioned:
Alo House saved our lives in a way. Certainly getting to hang out with our clients 24/7, and getting to be of service to them—many of those early clients are still sober today—was so beneficial to us at that time. We got to discover this gift for helping people that we didn’t know we had.
It’s funny, I actually remember thinking, lying in bed the night before we opened our doors, “Wait a minute, I can’t do this, I can’t be surrounded by addicts and alcoholics every day for the rest of my life.” I couldn’t have been more wrong. This has been my greatest joy, outside of my family now, and definitely my greatest passion.
Credits:
Alo House Recovery: Evan Haines and Jared Valentine
Producers: Jeff Venida and Jessica Marren (Agency: Paradam)
Director: Kasey Lum
Director of Photography: Cole Graham
Voiceover: Bob Forrest