What was the brief?

Create a video to introduce Shiatsu therapy to potential clients and encourage uptake of the practice.  

How did we do it?

Shiatsu is a touch therapy which is very difficult to describe and the benefits difficult to quantify. What can be said is also restricted by the Government’s Advertising Standards Agency. Claims about healthcare benefits must be backed up by research data and approved by the authorities. Those who practice Shiatsu and those that receive it experience the benefits first hand, and so the aim of this video was to introduce the therapy so viewers understood what a session looks like with clients lying in different positions. Viewers needed to see the variety of techniques used from moments of stillness, movement and stretching. Our client wanted viewers new to the therapy to be intrigued and motivated enough to try it for themselves. The client, Shiatsu Society UK, are confident that once a person experiences the power of touch in the right hands they will want to continue with more sessions with qualified practitioners on its approved register.

The video needed to be less than 2 minutes long and yet convey a lot of information visually and in commentary The script had to be precise, brief and accurate while still intimating at Shiatsu’s potential to do much more. The commentary was kept to a minimum by visually showing what sessions look like and how touch is delivered through clothing, without needles or massage oils, and in a comfortable settings without having to say these things too. The set needed to depict the right ambiance supported by subtle lighting. The tone and pace needed to be conducive to the calming and relaxing affect of Shiatsu, so the pace of the edit, the delivery of the commentary and selection of the music track were very important.

The video begins by quickly establishing the need for Shiatsu in today’s hectic world and why touch is so important to humans. Very quickly it needed to visually depict as many aspects of Shiatsu as possible. The practitioners and clients needed to reflect the UK population. We used experienced practitioners, dressed in Shiatsu Society branded shirts, with a Shiatsu teacher on hand to ensure every technique filmed was delivered correctly.

White Hart was delighted at how well the video was received and used by the Shiatsu Society, its members and the wider community.