Generations of Greatness celebrates the achievements of BAME creatives in Britain

People of Culture Creative started off as a WhatsApp group and has grown to become a force for change in the creative industry. The collective of people working in advertising, media, fashion, arts, film and photography works to promote and support BAME creatives in a predominantly white industry to diversify creative teams, and has just launched its first campaign, called Generations of Greatness.

Featuring portraits of leading names in the creative sector, from Radio 1’s Clara Amfo to filmmaker Eloise King and CEO of creative and experience design at Engine, Ete Davies, the adverts tell the story of each individual’s family heritage, starting with a previous generation.
For example, King’s tells the life stories of her grandmother Dorothy, who rerooted from Jamaica in 1957 and worked in the NHS for 40 years, and mother, who worked for HMRC Intelligence for 20 years. In telling these stories, the campaign aims to “course-correct” the narrative around black and brown people in Britain.

“There are millions of people who contribute to the success of this country and who are demonised because of their background,” says a statement from POCC. “This is not new. But these communities are now living in a social climate that’s becoming increasingly hostile, with a pernicious and often unregulated media, a politically driven narrative, and a mounting anti-immigrant rhetoric.”

Generations of Greatness therefore intends to “press the simple message that these people have been putting the ‘Great’ in Great Britain since they set foot on this ‘green and pleasant’ land.”

Members of the POCC community work within top agencies and companies such as AMV BBDO, Ogilvy, BBC, Channel 4, Havas, Dazed, Sony, Spotify, Somesuch and Wieden+Kennedy, while others are freelance. It was co-founded by Nana Bempah and Kevin Morosky.

The campaign launches today and will run for a year.