Canon turns to social influencer Anna Akana for 'Rebel With A Cause' video around anti-bullying
Canon turned to social influencer Anna Akana, who has over 1.5 million subscribers to her YouTube channel, for their “Rebel With a Cause” piece around anti-bullying.
Canon Rebel With A Cause, Anna Akana Hosts "Stand-Up to Bullying" At The Groundlings Theatre And School in Los Angeles / Getty Images for Canon
To celebrate the 10th anniversary of National Bullying Prevention Month, Akana came together with The Groundlings comedy troupe for a workshop for adolescents who have been victims of bullying. Through the three days, and through the video, they showed the teens how to use humor to take their situation and make it their own material.
"Our strategy for the Rebel With A Cause program was truly to break from the norm of similar campaigns in the past for camera brands. Shooting a campaign of this size entirely on a Canon EOS Rebel T6i DSLR is typically unheard of, and we wanted to showcase the power of the camera alongside the power of our Rebels,” said Rob Altman, Senior Manager, camera marketing, Canon USA.
Akana shared her personal story on YouTube, after her sister committed suicide as a result of bullying. In the wake of her sister’s death, she said, “I really dove into comedy. It was the first time that I was really able to laugh and escape the horrors of like her death. I think this program is about giving kids that have been bullied the tools to be able to make fun of a lot of their experiences.”
Launched in 2015, Canon’s Rebel With A Cause campaign was created, with the help of advertising and marketing agency, Grey, to highlight “rebels” who live life in their own way, shot with a Canon EOS Rebel DSLR camera.
“The campaign celebrates personalities from all walks of life as they channel their unique passions, all with the end goal of making a difference and being a true Rebel With A Cause. We’re inviting people into our Rebels' worlds with imagery that makes their cause shine and hopefully inspires others to follow their own passions and get involved,” Altman said.