MJ Delaney and Beyonce’s fierce Unicef video Freedom empowers girls around the world

Date
12 October 2017

In a spine-tinglingly powerful film for Unicef, director MJ Delaney has worked with young girls around the world to channel Beyoncé and raise awareness of global issues on education, violence and human trafficking.

The video set to Beyoncé’s Freedom was released for International Day of the Girl and sees the girls lip syncing and dancing to the track with all the confidence and flair of the original artist. The mesmerising sequences are set against shocking facts about the issues faced by girls internationally. For example one in four girls gets married as a child; 71% of human trafficking victims are female; 63 million girls have undergone female genital mutilation; and 130 million girls are out of school.

Last year’s campaign, also directed by MJ Delaney, recreated the Spice Girls’ Wannabe video aiming create an “aggressive and demanding… less cutesy” call to action for women’s rights. This year’s asks us to “raise your voice for freedom”.

“In 2015 when leaders signed up to the UN Sustainable Development Goals – the Global Goals – they made a promise – to empower all girls,” Unicef says in a statement with the video. “There has been progress but we need to keep up the pressure. If we work together we can make sure world leaders deliver and every girl grows up healthy, safe, empowered and able to fulfil her dreams.”

The film was produced by Project Everyone and Moxie Pictures.

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MJ Delaney for Unicef: Freedom

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MJ Delaney for Unicef: Freedom

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MJ Delaney for Unicef: Freedom

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MJ Delaney for Unicef: Freedom

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MJ Delaney for Unicef: Freedom

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MJ Delaney for Unicef: Freedom

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MJ Delaney for Unicef: Freedom

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MJ Delaney for Unicef: Freedom

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About the Author

Jenny Brewer

Jenny oversees our editorial output across work, news and features. She was previously It’s Nice That's news editor. Get in touch with any big creative stories, tips, pitches, news and opinions, or questions about all things editorial.

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