Prisoner

FRANCE PARKINSON LAUNCHES ITS NEWAWARENESSCAMPAIGN, “
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Living with Parkinson’s disease means becoming a prisoner of a body that no longer belongs to you.

In France, more than 270,000 people live with Parkinson’s disease, and thousands of new cases are diagnosed each year. Yet the disease remains largely unknown to the general public. In fact, more than 7 out of 10 French people cannot identify its most debilitating motor symptoms: slowness of movement and rigidity.

A communication campaign to highlight the severity of the disease.

To mark World Parkinson’s Day on April 11, the France Parkinson association is launching a new communication campaign to change perceptions of people with the disease and remind the public of the urgent need for action to advance research.

“Parkinson’s disease is not just about tremors. It is a disease that can make you feel as though your own body is becoming a prison,” the association notes.

Through this message, France Parkinson aims to show what people with the disease actually experience: the sensation of gradually becoming a prisoner of one’s own body, which results in a progressive confinement within oneself.

For behind the image often reduced to tremors, Parkinson’s disease is a serious neurodegenerative disorder that manifests through many other symptoms and profoundly disrupts the lives of those it affects.

A body that stiffens, that resists, but that eventually becomes immobilized.

At the heart of the campaign is a powerful visual: a body encased in a substance that seems to hinder it, then tightens around it until it prevents it from moving. A metaphor for what many people with the disease describe: a body that slows down, stiffens, freezes, and gradually stops responding. The campaign is based on a depiction of this perceived confinement, pushed to its extreme.

A 360° campaign featuring writer Leïla Slimani.

Launching on April 13, the campaign will be rolled out through a 360° initiative. A TV spot produced by Hiersoir and directed by Lucie Bourdeu (who won a Golden Lion at Cannes in 2025 for the film “L’anniversaire de trop” for the Valentin Haüy Association). A film that will also be shown in theaters, on video-on-demand (VOD), and in digital out-of-home (DOOH) spaces.

The campaign also includes print media, social media engagement, and a major radio campaign featuring four spots currently airing. The voice-over for the film and radio spots is provided by Leïla Slimani, a committed advocate for the cause and ambassador for the association since 2024. She calls on the public to take action.

Hope will never abandon us.
Because one in fifty people will be affected during their lifetime, France Parkinson works every day to support those living with the disease, assist their loved ones, inform the public, and advance research.