Beulah Mae Donald wasn’t a household name. But her pivotal role in history needed to be told. In 1981, she lost her teenage son to a lynching at the hands of the Ku Klux Klan. This unassuming Black woman then fought the Klan in court . . . in Alabama . . . with an all-white jury . . . and won.
CNN teamed up with Blumhouse Television to create a new original documentary series around Ms. Donald. And the CNN Creative Marketing team invited REV to conceive, develop and produce the marketing launch campaign promos. The goal? Capture the essence of Beulah Mae Donald’s astonishing true story and its resonance with the ongoing fight for racial justice.
REV sold this event series to consumers on an emotional level. The team built the narrative thread around an impactful anthem, “White Flag,” and its call-to-action lyrics, passionately sung by rising music superstar Bishop Briggs. Then, REV combined crucial clips with striking animated images of Ms. Donald, illustrated by acclaimed mixed-media social justice artist Victoria Cassinova.​
This potent fusion resulted in the two key campaign spots: “Story,” an expression of strength and defiance when Beulah Mae Donald took down the Klan.​
And “Her,” haunting and powerful in juxtaposing the KKK’s image of terror with the literal portrait of a woman triumphant, settling for nothing less than true justice.
REV also created a “Her Story” trailer to run during live CNN programming in the week leading to the series premiere.
This CNN Original Series premiered to much critical and viewer acclaim while marking the horrific tragedy’s 40th anniversary. And the marketing campaign helped make the network’s first project with Blumhouse a huge ratings success.