Recruiting first responders for the National Ambulance Service
Community First Responders are volunteers who reach a cardiac arrest near them and start CPR before the ambulance arrives. In 2022 an advanced paramedic at the National Ambulance Service asked us to make a film to recruit more of them, with real responders and ambulance crews in every role. It launched at a national press event on 13 July 2022.
Video for the public sectorWatch the film
What the National Ambulance Service needed, and what we made
- When
- February to July 2022
- Where
- A control room, a training hall, a family home and the Fair City set
- On camera
- Volunteer responders and ambulance crews
What they needed
A film to bring in new Community First Responders, showing what happens from the 999 call to the volunteers arriving, treating the patient and working with the ambulance crew. Plus stills for posters and recruitment drives.
What we filmed
The control room taking the call, volunteers alerted on their phones, a CPR training night, the emergency and the handover to the crew, and portraits of the real responders. It ends with a cardiac arrest survivor saying that early CPR saved their life.
How we planned it
The storyline came from the paramedic who briefed us, and we planned the shoot with him: a shot list, a prop list, the risk documents, and a check that every volunteer fitted the age profile the film needed.
What we delivered
- A 1:49 recruitment film
- Three alternative endings
- Four short trailers for the launch
- Portrait clips of each responder
- Stills for posters and recruitment
- All the project files
A 1:49 recruitment film, three alternative endings, four short trailers for the launch, portrait clips of each responder, stills for posters and recruitment, all the project files.
“Based on what I’ve seen and what my managers have seen, Mango Media’s work quality has outdone our expectations, to the point where we’re rethinking how to launch the video.”
From storyline to launch day
Five months from the first call to a launch with the National Ambulance Service and the Irish Heart Foundation.
Step 01
February 2022: the storyline
The paramedic came to us with the idea and a storyline. We turned it into a step-by-step shot list and walked him through the shoot in advance.
Step 02
March to May 2022: the shoot
Risk documents and a method statement first, then the filming, with real volunteers and crews in every scene, and stills for the posters.
Step 03
June 2022: the edit
Six cuts, each one tighter, then three alternative endings so the service could choose how the film closes.
Step 04
July 2022: the launch
Portrait clips of each responder and four short trailers went out first. The film launched at Dunboyne Castle on 13 July, with speakers from the National Ambulance Service and the Irish Heart Foundation.
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Pick a time for a free 30-minute call with us about your recruitment film. Bring who you need to reach and what they need to see. No hard sell, just an honest chat.
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