Facebook and Droga5 Craft a Poetic Meditation on Staying Connected

British spoken-word artist Kate Tempest drops lines from her track “People’s Faces” in this short film from Droga5 touting Facebook’s extension of its Community Help feature to assist users amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Her poetic observations about the transcendent power of a smile and resilience of the human spirit weave through images of a world coping with daily existence in the age of COVID-19:

“We’re working every dread day that is given us
Feeling like the person people meet really isn’t us
Like we’re going to buckle underneath the trouble
Like any minute now, the struggle’s going to finish us
And then we smile at all our friends.”

In a post, Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg says the 90-second film, “Never Lost,” strives “to honor the solidarity and resilience of so many people coming together during this time.”

Tempest’s narration continues:

“Even when I’m weak and I’m breaking
I stand weeping at the train station
‘Cause I can see your faces
There is so much peace to be found in people’s faces.”

At the end, the line “We’re never lost if we can find each other” flashes on screen along with a Community Help link.

Building on existing Facebook tools, the service expedites requests or offers for help among neighbors and facilitates donations to fundraisers and relief efforts. COVID-19 functionality rolls out across the U.S., U.K., France, Australia and Canada in the next few days, with more countries on tap in the weeks to come.

“Never Lost,” will run on national and local TV and digital channels.

“It has never been more important to stay connected, especially when we must stay physically apart,” a Facebook rep tells Muse. “We are incredibly inspired by how people are using our technologies. Seeing these displays of solidarity—between individuals, communities and nations—reaffirms what we have always believed in: the limitless potential of people when they can come together.”

Earlier, Facebook pledged $20 million in matching funds to the United Nations Foundation and the CDC Foundation for pandemic relief, and, intriguingly, the social networking giant appears to be testing a COVID-19 “Reaction” emoji, though it is unclear how such an icon would be utilized.

CREDITS

Facebook Inc. : Never Lost
Client: Facebook, Inc.
Title: Never Lost
Launch Date: March 31, 2020

Agency: Droga5 NY
Creative Chairman: David Droga
Global Chief Creative Officer: Neil Heymann
Co-Chief Creative Officer: Felix Richter
Co-Chief Creative Officer: Tim Gordon
Global Head of Art: Alexander Nowak
Managing Director: Dan Gonda
Creative Director: Jono Paull
Creative Director: Dustin Tomes
Creative Director: Thom Glover
Creative Director: Marybeth Ledesma
Art Director: Paul Oberlin
Copywriter: Josh Dimarcantonio
Art Director: Oscar Gierup
Copywriter: Stacy-Ann Ellis
Design Director: Maria Wan
Senior Designer: Eli Hochberg
Motion Graphics Designer: Michael Gaynor
Chief Creation Officer: Sally-Ann Dale
Director of Film Production: Jesse Brihn
Executive Producer, Film: Mike Hasinoff
Producer, Film: Carlos Valvidia
Associate Producer, Film: Robert Matuluko
Senior Music Supervisor: Mike Ladman
Director of Business Affairs: Dan Simonetti
Senior Business Manager: Paul Van Dorpe
Celebrity Talent Relations Lead: Whitney Vose
Traffic Manager: Wendy Kaplan
Talent Manager: Sunny Valencia
Graphics Studio Manager: Nereida Valles
Global Chief Strategy Officer: Jonny Bauer
Head of Strategy: Harry Roman-Torres
Group Strategy Director: Dan Ng
Strategy Director: Cathy Song
Senior Strategist: Graham Jones
Group Communications Strategy Director: Yan Wang
Communications Strategy Director: Patrick Fahey
Senior Communications Strategist: Christin Wiegand
Group Data Strategy Director: Wendy Kong
Senior Data Strategist: Daria Koren
Senior Project Manager: Simon Jolly
Group Account Director: Susan Pratchett
Account Director: Gabrielle Barbuto
Account Supervisor: Chelsea Elliott
Account Manager: Roxanne Alberts
Account Manager: Cole Habersham

Client: Facebook
CMO: Antonio Lucio
Vice President,Corporate Brand Marketing Kate Rouch
Director, Brand Strategy: Andrew Stirk
Group Creative Director: Thomas Markham
Creative Director: Zach Stubenvoll
Motion Designer: Jerod Wanner
Director, Brand Programs: Mayumi Matsuno
Global Director of Brand Marketing: Jasmine Summerset-Karcie
Marketing Program Manager: Kaitlin Giannetti
Marketing Manager: Gregory Paige
Marketing Manager: Katie Secrest
Brand Strategist: Josh Cleveland
Marketing Insights Director: Rick Malins
Marketing Research Manager: Jenn Dahm
Marketing Researcher: Amy Huang
Marketing Researcher: Lia Breunig
Director, Communications Planning: Radhika Narang
Communication Planning Manager: Dani Nichols
Brand Communications Lead: Lisa Stratton
Executive Producer: Julian Katz
Executive Producer: Maresa Wickham
Business Affairs Manager: Lauren Judelson
Business Affairs Manager: Kirsten Housel

Editorial: Second Child
Managing Director: Scott Chinn 
Editor: Nina Sacharow-Taylor: 
Assistant Editor: Emily Brennan
Assistant Editor: Jeff Leiser
Assistant Editor: Phil Serzo 
Senior Post Producer: Sari Resnick

Post Production: Blacksmith
Colorist: Mikey Pehanich
VFX 2D Lead: Iwan Zwarts
Executive Producer: Charlotte Arnold
VFX Senior Producer: Bindy St. Leger
Compositors: Ben Kwok, Robert Bruce, Jacob Slutsky,
Daniel Morris, Yebin Ahn 

Music: 
Poetic Song: People’s Faces: 
Artist: Kate Tempest: 

Sound: Wave
Sound Designer & Mixer: Aaron Reynolds: 
Executive Producer: Vicky Ferraro