Ovarian Cancer Australia and DDB Sydney Invite People to ‘Carry the Courage’ on World Ovarian Cancer Day

Today, on World Ovarian Cancer Day, charity Ovarian Cancer Australia (OCA) has called on Australians to ‘Carry the Courage’ of those affected by ovarian cancer in memory of women whose lives have been cut short by the disease.

With the help of DDB Sydney and Good Oil, OCA’s campaign highlights the alarming statistics of those affected by ovarian cancer: Less than half of women diagnosed with ovarian cancer will live beyond five years of the onset of their illness – one woman dies of the disease every eight hours.

That means women like Kristen and Jill, whose legacies are depicted in the campaign’s two films, are dying before they can make the impact they really want to.

The films celebrate Kristen and Jill’s spirits, stories, and activism. Set in the present tense, the films unfold to reveal that both Kristen and Jill have passed away from ovarian cancer. They conclude by inviting Australians to Carry the Courage of Kristen and Jill by helping OCA continue its fight to improve the disease’s survival rate. 

OCA Chief Marketing, Fundraising and Communications Jason Olive said: “Jill and Kristen both left behind an extraordinary legacy of activism. We’ve come so far in the time that they’ve died, however there’s still so much more to do.

“To create better outcomes for people affected by ovarian cancer, we need large-scale and long-term funding for research projects. We need high-quality care and treatment options that are affordable and accessible. At Ovarian Cancer Australia, we’ll keep fighting until the narrative of ovarian cancer is permanently changed.”

DDB Sydney Managing Partner Sasha Firth said: “Every person who contributed to these films, from music to sound to post-production, went above and beyond to pay tribute to the immense impact Kristen and Jill made, and the impact they will continue to make as people around the country Carry the Courage.”

Good Oil Director Renee Mao said: “We wanted people to feel like they knew these women personally by the end of the films. As part of making them, we searched through hours of footage, podcasts, photographs, and family stories to carefully craft an accurate depiction of who these women were. I can’t even put into words how emotional and inspiring it was to work on this, I just hope that Jill and Kristen would be happy their advocacy and their stories are continuing to inspire, change, and save women’s lives."