For a modern civilization that is over 3000 years old, we asked a seemingly innocuous question to men in Egypt - ‘What is your mother’s name?
Surprisingly, the men refused to tell us. This stemmed from a peculiar taboo where Egyptian men didn’t disclose their mother’s names in public, fearing they could be shamed or ridiculed.
So much so that mother’s names are forgotten over time, and they are only referred to as ‘the mother of her eldest son.’
We took our findings from the streets and launched a film on social media, to begin an initiative for the men of Egypt starting Mother’s Day, to ‘Give mom back her name’.
#MyMothersNameIs began trending online, becoming the 2nd most shared film worldwide on Facebook in under 24 hours.
The peculiar taboo was debated fiercely and the region’s Gender Equality groups joined the debate, making it the Most Trending Content on Feminism & Gender Equality. Egypt’s mass media took the conversation on-ground to the nation’s nerve centers – The Schools, Community Forums and the Streets where liberal and conservative points of view were debated. Beyond Egypt, international and regional media were catalysts to raise Arab voices around the world.
With the sentiment of gender equality sweeping the nation, scores of Egyptian men, women and celebrities, questioned the stigma and declared their mother’s names both online and on-ground. The most startling result however, wasn’t only that men gave mothers the right to their names, but that mothers stood for their rights themselves, for the first time.
Surprisingly, the men refused to tell us. This stemmed from a peculiar taboo where Egyptian men didn’t disclose their mother’s names in public, fearing they could be shamed or ridiculed.
So much so that mother’s names are forgotten over time, and they are only referred to as ‘the mother of her eldest son.’
We took our findings from the streets and launched a film on social media, to begin an initiative for the men of Egypt starting Mother’s Day, to ‘Give mom back her name’.
#MyMothersNameIs began trending online, becoming the 2nd most shared film worldwide on Facebook in under 24 hours.
The peculiar taboo was debated fiercely and the region’s Gender Equality groups joined the debate, making it the Most Trending Content on Feminism & Gender Equality. Egypt’s mass media took the conversation on-ground to the nation’s nerve centers – The Schools, Community Forums and the Streets where liberal and conservative points of view were debated. Beyond Egypt, international and regional media were catalysts to raise Arab voices around the world.
With the sentiment of gender equality sweeping the nation, scores of Egyptian men, women and celebrities, questioned the stigma and declared their mother’s names both online and on-ground. The most startling result however, wasn’t only that men gave mothers the right to their names, but that mothers stood for their rights themselves, for the first time.
Executive Creative Director, Editor: Fadi Yaish
Art Directors: Maged Nassar, Tameem Younes
Copywriter: Aunindo Sen
Senior Creative Designer: Mohamed Said
Typographer: Mahmmad Al Mahdy
Production House: Bigfoot
Directors: Maged Nassar, Tameem Younes
Director of Photography: Ahmed Tahoun
Postproduction: Lizard
Art Directors: Maged Nassar, Tameem Younes
Copywriter: Aunindo Sen
Senior Creative Designer: Mohamed Said
Typographer: Mahmmad Al Mahdy
Production House: Bigfoot
Directors: Maged Nassar, Tameem Younes
Director of Photography: Ahmed Tahoun
Postproduction: Lizard
Awards:
Cannes Lions 2015:
Glass Lion
Shortlist - Direct Lions
Cannes Lions 2015:
Glass Lion
Shortlist - Direct Lions
