Box-bound Beckham fends off mosquito swarm for malaria campaign
David Beckham has braved a swarm of mosquitoes for his latest promotional campaign, a bid to raise awareness of malaria among global leaders by Malaria No More UK.
Malaria Must Die – So Millions Can Live saw the footballer turned model locked inside a giant glass box with nothing but a swarm of mosquitoes for company. A pensive-looking Beckham can be seen eyeing up his hungry roommates as the insects buzzing and numbers grow steadily to reach a crescendo.
At the end of Beckham’s ordeal the box is revealed to be mercifully mosquito free but, as the campaign makes plain, the same cannot be said for the world outside where the disease still claims an estimated 445,000 lives each year.
Championing renewed global vigour in combatting the disease the campaign, filmed by Ridley Scott Associates and R/GA Creative, it presages a meeting of the Commonwealth Heads of Government in London this April.
Beckham, a founding member Malaria No More UK leadership council and goodwill ambassador for Unicef, commented: “As the mosquito film shows, these insects are annoying in places likes the UK but in many parts of the world, a mosquito bite is terrifying and deadly, leading to malaria and the loss of a child’s life every two minutes. This is totally unacceptable, especially when we know how to prevent and cure it.
"That’s why I’m standing with the millions who live with this threat every day. I urge Commonwealth leaders to be ready to take bold action when they meet in London in April and to unite to stop this disease in its tracks.”
R/GA will support the film with an integrated communications and advocacy roadmap over the next three years.
Mosquitoes recently swarmed the logo of the Discovery channel to advertise a new documentary examining the history of the pervasive pest.
