With the opioid epidemic showing no signs of slowing, the Massachusetts' Middlesex District Attorney鈥檚 Office has turned to a Boston College communications professor for help in creating a video message that will raise awareness of the risks of opioid use 鈥攁nd resonate with a young audience.
Titled 鈥淪aid No Drug Dealer Ever,鈥� the new public service video is designed to make a prospective opiate user consider the issues that might follow that first pill, from side effects to costs to addiction.
鈥淲e did not want it to be a scare tactic piece,鈥� says Assistant Communication professor Matt Sienkiewicz, who co-produced the PSA with lead producer and director Joe Sousa. 鈥淛oe and I both grew up with PSAs that were meant to horrify you out of using drugs often by overstating things; those have not proven to be terribly effective over time. We wanted to do something that could draw attention but not seem cute, or to be exaggerating of the problems of drugs. We wanted to give people a reason to take a moment and think about their decisions.鈥�
听'Said No Drug Dealer Ever' 鈥� watch the PSA.
The PSA, released in May, begins with a scene from a party. A teen sits next to a man鈥攁 dealer鈥攚ho has a bowl full of pills.
鈥淛ust reach in, grab a couple,鈥� says the dealer. 鈥淰icodin, percs, Oxy. You鈥檙e bound to grab something good.鈥�
鈥淭hanks, bro,鈥� the teen says as he nods approvingly.
鈥淏efore I forget, I have some paperwork to go over.听 Don鈥檛 worry,鈥� says the dealer, reassuringly. 鈥淚t鈥檚 just a formality.鈥�
鈥淲hat did you say?鈥� asks the confused teen, as he is handed pamphlets by the dealer.
鈥淭his one outlines the general side effects,鈥� says the dealer.
The scene then switches to an office where the dealer is dressed up in a suit, and continues his presentation while handing the teen more pamphlets.
鈥淭his one talks specifically about how opioids impact the brain. Here鈥檚 a list of emergency numbers. The poison info hotline is useful. 911, but you probably already know that number.鈥�
鈥淲ait, what just happened?鈥� asks the teen. 鈥淲hen did you change into a suit?鈥�
鈥淩ight,鈥� says the drug dealer. 鈥淎bsolutely. Eventually you鈥檙e going to turn to heroin and you鈥檒l need a few clean needles for that. It would be a shame if you contracted HIV or hepatitis. Oh, and this chart is pretty neat鈥攊t shows how much your addiction will cost over time, both on the drug and eventually rehab. So I鈥檓 just going to need your emergency contact, right here.鈥�
Sienkiewicz says he and Sousa thought of the scene in terms of a听Saturday听Night Live听sketch,听but with an extra edge and serious point behind it. The party scene transitioning to the more serious office backdrop where the risks and drawbacks of drug use were outlined did the trick, he said.
鈥淲e wanted the scene to feel real at first and resonate with the life experiences of young people. Then we wanted to give a subtle, entertaining jolt to the viewer.鈥�
Getting young people to really think about what the first pill could lead to is critical, especially given the ways in which opioids often appear innocent to a new user, says Sienkiewicz.
鈥淭hese pills are prescription, they don鈥檛 look like traditional drugs, they don鈥檛 look like heroin, you don鈥檛 snort or inject them,鈥� says Sienkiewicz.听 鈥淚t鈥檚 very easy to take them鈥攁nd a lot of people do start without giving it much thought. They鈥檙e at a show or a party, somebody has some pills, somebody offers them a pill, and they don鈥檛 think about it. All we want people to do is take a moment and think about it. What are the costs of taking this innocuous looking little pill? In reality, it has serious consequences.鈥�
Sienkiewicz is an Emmy-nominated documentary filmmaker and screenwriter, as well as an accomplished media scholar. In 2014, he co-produced with Sousa the film documentary "The Ragged Edge," which provided an inside look at the struggles of a family-owned motorcycle production business trying to survive in the competitive world of racing. He also produced the film, 鈥淟ive from Bethlehem,鈥� that was screened worldwide, including at the Rhode Island International Film Festival, Poland's WatchDocs Human Rights Film Festival, the Chicago Palestine Film Festival, and London鈥檚 Frontline Club.
Near the end of the 鈥淪aid No Drug Deal Ever鈥� PSA, the dealer, still in his suit, offers to show the teen a power point presentation.
鈥淒on鈥檛 worry,鈥� he reassures the teen. 鈥淚t will only take a few minutes. Let me just fire up the projector.鈥�
The scene switches back to where it all began: the party.
鈥淎s your drug dealer, I want to be sure that you鈥檙e fully informed so you know exactly what it is you鈥檙e getting into.鈥�
This PSA is now on the Middlesex DA鈥檚 website and social media channels and is scheduled to air on at least one local television station.
鈥淎s part of the Middlesex DA's diverse approach to addressing opioid abuse, I think the PSA can play a positive role,鈥� says Sienkiewicz. 听鈥淚t's very difficult to draw cause and effect when it comes to a media campaign. But it can only help if young people take a moment to contemplate the impact of the decisions they make.鈥�
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