Stubbornness is praised in this touching spot for the American Cancer Society, where a twitchy, nervous kid in a tux and Converse All-Stars picks up his prom date, who would have the right to be even more nervous than he is.
Along with stubbornness, the ad lauds courage among the things that give human beings an advantage over cancer, and leads to increased survival rates. The girl attending prom despite her treatment is meant to symbolize this, and does a really nice job of it.
The tone of the ad—by DDB Chicago and Central Films North director Rodrigo Garcia Saiz—inspires us to cheer for her, rather than pity her, and her date's obvious stomach butterflies make another entry point for empathy.
The ad is part of the ACS's "Advantage: Humans" series. Another video, "Anger," appears below. "Courage," above, is also available in Spanish.
