IMPACT FILM
PRODUCTION HOUSE
Creating Unforgettable Films
Impact Films
At Moonshine Agency we create award-winning documentaries and impact films. We work with philanthropists, activists and visionaries to craft documentaries and films that influence viewers to get involved and take action.
Unlike other forms of media, films can educate, raise awareness and entertain, all at the same time. When done well, they can inspire social change and alter how we see things.
Over the past decade, Moonshine Agency has produced impact films covering a range of topics, from healthcare to the environment and everything in between.
We understand the power of storytelling to change hearts and minds.
Impact Films – MOONSHINE AGENCY
What is an Impact Film?
Impact films are film-led communications designed to inspire positive social change and make a lasting impact.
Some films are anti-social due to glorified violence, crime, and anarchy. And although this can be entertaining, it’s not particularly helpful in inspiring social progression. By comparison, impact films are pro-social films that inspire a better future. So, in short, they are optimistic, not pessimistic.
Similarly, some famous examples include An Inconvenient Truth (climate change), That Sugar Film (healthy eating), and Citizenfour (surveillance).
Despite their name, impact films tend not to be comprised of a single film but of a whole collection of communications activities that might be more accurately described as a campaign. However, the film part is important and warrants its headline status for a number of reasons. Firstly, films are ‘tent-pole events’ that utilize marketing strategies to bring their topic into the public consciousness at a particular point in time. And secondly, pro-social films are simply the most powerful and effective method of communicating around social causes.
Who makes Impact Films?
Impact films tend to involve close collaboration between impact filmmakers, like Moonshine Agency, and change makers including philanthropists, activists, and thought leaders. There tends to be a natural alignment and synergy between the topics of impact films and the mission of foundations, NGOs and corporate social responsibility. Our past work has also included collaborations with broadcasters, private donors, distribution platforms, governments, charities, hospitals, universities, professional associations, and everyday people.
How are Impact Films used?
Impact films are typically screened at film festivals, broadcast on television and reported on in the mainstream media. This has a dramatic impact on the visibility and familiarity of the film’s topic and can play a considerable role in informing public and political opinion. Some of the most powerful impressions made by impact films can come from touch points such as hosted screenings, social media and distribution through educational channels including schools, universities, and institutions.
How do Impact Films make a difference?
Impact films tend to benefit causes in a variety of ways but most commonly contribute to drastically increased visibility, positive social outcomes, higher levels of community engagement and more funds.
Can Impact Films be evaluated?
Yes, impact films can, and should be evaluated. This approaches applies academic rigour providing an unbiased measure of how successfully a given film has made an impact. Impact film evaluation is a growing field of study. For instance, the impact film Take Heart: The Quest to Rid Australasia of Rheumatic Heart Disease produced by Moonshine Agency was independently evaluated by IEMI (Implementing & Evaluating to Maximise Impact) with the support of Bupa Health Foundation in October, 2018. The evaluation provides a detailed analysis of the impact of the film-based visual communications produced in communicating important health information, driving behaviour change and policy outcomes. In terms of reach, third-party iSentia data showed that the project was reported on in the media more than 1,300 times, with an estimated reach of more than 12 million people and an ARS (comparative cost of purchasing the equivalent amount of media pace and/ or time) of over AUD $13,000,000 (USD$9,300,000).
Learn More About Impact Films
Impact Films afford change makers a unique opportunity to make the world a better place. Moonshine Agency has specialized in this area of communications since 2010. We have been lucky enough to have collaborated with dozens of organizations around the world. We’re passionate about making the world a better place, one story at a time. And we’d be thrilled to offer our assistance in helping you learn more about this exciting genre and how it can be harnessed to support your mission.
Featured Project:
Moonshine Agency has specialized in Impact Film campaigns since it was founded in 2010 and has collaborated with dozens of organizations worldwide to generate millions of impressions across traditional and digital media. These examples demonstrate how Impact Films can be used to make the world a better place. Through collaboration between filmmakers, activists, entrepreneurs and visionaries, socially conscious audiences can be engaged to rally behind movements for a better tomorrow.
Conquering Skin Cancer
For every body under the sun
Australians have changed the world. We’ve invented polymer bank notes, the electronic pacemaker, the Hills hoist and the black box flight recorder. And now Australia is number one for skin cancer. Perhaps we didn’t invent it, but it’s becoming the cancer Australia is world-famous for. And yet many Aussies still don’t understand the danger of excess UV exposure.
The WHO predicts that there will be a 68% increase in deaths from melanoma by 2040. But this is not set in stone. And although Australia has one of the highest skin cancer rates in the world (Cancer Council); most skin cancers can be prevented.
Conquering Skin Cancer features prominent and beloved voices in this important space, including 2024 Australians of the Year Professors Richard Scolyer and Georgina Long, Australian media icon Deborah Hutton, Olympian Cate Campbell, and World Champion Surfer Wayne ‘Rabbit’ Bartholomew.
The film also spotlights amazing activists such as Jay Allen (Australia Skin Cancer Foundation), Tamara Dawson (Melanoma and Skin Cancer Advocacy Network), Scott Maggs (Skin Check Champions) and Anne Gately (Author, “Sunburnt”); who candidly share their inspirational stories in the pursuit of positive change.
Weaving together compelling and emotional stories from survivors, advocates, and world-leading experts, the second instalment in the international Conquering Cancer Campaign delves into how every body can live safely under the sun. From self-image and survival, to beauty trends and climate change, this film explores it all.
Topic
Skin Cancer Prevention
Year
2024
Partners
Eau Thermale Avène, Cancer Council, Bristol Myers Squibb, MSD, Canfield Imaging, The Australasian College of Dermatologists, The Alfred Foundation, CoolCabanas, MoleMap, and Moonshine Agency
Outputs
90 minute feature, streaming film, social media campaign, mass media publicity, website, outreach campaign
Conquering Breast Cancer
Powerful Stories for a Hopeful Future
Women play vital roles in every facet of society; but the indiscriminate nature of breast cancer underscores the necessity of universal access to prevention, screening, and treatment. Conquering Breast Cancer helps bring awareness to breast cancer, and advocates for early detection and better access to treatment.
We don’t yet have a vaccine like the HPV vaccine (which prevents cervical cancer), but we know that early detection is the key to positive outcomes. And in countries like Australia and the USA, the 5-year survival rate is now at 90%.
Alarmingly though, the burden of breast cancer is projected to exceed 3 million new cases and 1 million deaths annually by 2040. In low and middle-income countries, 50-80% of cases are diagnosed at an advanced, often incurable stage. Public education, early diagnosis and effective treatments are the key to reducing these rates.
Conquering Breast Cancer embarks on a journey exploring what personal risk really is; including genetic risk factors and prevention options. And for women at high risk, it promotes actionable steps.
Learn about the reality of living with advanced breast cancer, and discover more about advancements in targeted therapies that are improving patient outcomes.
Topic
Breast Cancer Prevention
Year
2025
Partners
Outputs
80 minute feature, short films, streaming film, social media campaign, mass media publicity, website, outreach campaign.
Vision
- Theatrical release, professional event and outreach screenings worldwide.
- Extensive social media campaign across multiple platforms
- Subscription VOD (Amazon Prime) VOD (Vimeo) and educational distribution (Kanopy Streaming).
- Extensive mass media coverage.
Conquering Cancer
Conquering Cervical Cancer dares you to imagine the seemingly unthinkable- what if we could conquer cancer? Featuring stories from accoladed field experts, stirring tales from survivors, and a rousing call to action from activists worldwide, Conquering Cervical Cancer is a groundbreaking documentary with a soaring ambition: to accelerate the elimination of cervical cancer worldwide. Travelling from Australia to Malaysia; Zambia to the USA; Colombia to Switzerland, Conquering Cancer declares a deep divide.
At a time when cervical cancer is on the brink of elimination but more than 300,000 women are still lost to the preventable disease each year, governments across the world must prioritise cervical cancer control. In 2018, the World Health Organization called for global action to end cervical cancer this century. By doing so, it is estimated that, 62 million lives could be saved.
Conquering Cancer introduces us to the inspiring medical professionals championing the global push to eliminate cervical cancer; the policymakers who are bringing prevention programs to their regions; and the women who have faced cervical cancer head-on and have emerged furiously, ready to take action against this needless disease. We are moved by their emotional narratives, as they speak candidly about treatment and recovery; tragedy and hope. Theirs is a story of extraordinary determination and heart.
Topic
Cervical Cancer Elimination
Year
2020
Partners
Roche, American Cancer Society, Expertise France Minderoo Foundation, Cepheid, Abbott, BD, QIAGEN, Hologic, Varian, Cancer Council Australia, VCS Foundation, Cancer Council Victoria, UICC, C4 and Moonshine Agency.
Outputs
60 minute feature, 52 short films, streaming film, social media campaign, mass media publicity, website, outreach campaign.
Vision
- Theatrical release, professional event and outreach screenings worldwide.
- Extensive social media campaign across multiple platforms in 10 languages.
- International TV distribution, Subscription VOD (Amazon Prime) and educational distribution (Kanopy Streaming).
- Extensive mass media coverage.
- Significant impact in strengthening the social movement and getting results.
- Multiple awards and acknowledgements.
Live The Life You Please
Imagine if we treated end-of-life the same way we treated the start-of-life?
Join the movement to drive a national conversation about making better end-of-life care available to all Australians.
Live the life you please is a definitive, new feature documentary film about living and dying in Australia.
The film boasts a treasure trove of incredible stories captured all around Australia, from cities and regional centres to remote communities.
It will make you smile, laugh, laugh harder and occasionally shed a tear as it shares the stories of a diverse range of Australians experiencing their last chapter.
Stories include Australians of all ages, different stages of disease and a variety of geographical locations, cultural, socio-economic and personal circumstances.
The film powerfully makes the case for the impact good services make as we approach the end-of-life.
It makes the social and economic case for increased support of essential services including palliative care, aged care, community care, allied health and the support of carers at home.
This remarkable film also supports the concepts of cultural safety, healthy conversations about death and dying amongst family members, and the importance of advance care planning.
This inspiring film will release on May 22nd, 2023 at cinemas throughout the nation.
Topic
End-of-life care, palliative care and related services
Year
2023
Partners
The Snow Foundation, Palliative Care Australia, Arcare, PEPA, Dementia Australia, Aspire4Life, Very Special kids, Spiritual Health Association, St Vincent’s Health Australia, Calvary, I Am Living, caring@home, Advanced Care Planning Australia
Outputs
90 minute feature-documentary
New School 2
What is the purpose of Schooling?
In the second outing the New School team explore the fundamental questions for education: what is schooling for? What is its purpose?
The film explores these questions across Australasia in both Primary and Secondary Schools. It reveals the ongoing tensions between success in wellbeing and academia.
Rather than finding an either-or, the film reveals the need for a careful consideration of both elements. The film explores three schools who focus on the many dimensions of success and who are driven by clear visions of purpose.
Host
Dr Scott Alterator
Featuring
Professor Pasi Sahlberg, Mary Featherstone, Dr Esme Capp
Topic
Education
Year
2024
Partners
Learning Environments Australasia and Moonshine Agency.
Take Heart: Deadly Heart
Stand with us as we fight to eliminate RHD in Australia by 2030!
Take Heart: Deadly Heart is a campaign for change. We are calling on our government to fund the community-led services that prevent Rheumatic Heart Disease and keep families strong and together.
We all know that taking care of one another is what community is all about but our government isn’t taking care of everyone – we are losing two young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples to Rheumatic Heart Disease every week.
Whether your family has been here for 5 years, 5 generations or for 50,000 generations, you can stand with us and call for urgent action against this preventable disease.
Rheumatic Heart Disease causes permanent damage to the heart. It results from a throat or skin infection caused by Strep A bacteria and if not managed properly, it can lead to heart failure, disability and premature death. It is also entirely preventable.
Along with our impact partners. we will be using Take Heart: Deadly Heart as a tool to campaign for funding the community-led RHD prevention programs that are known to work. Take Heart: Deadly Heart was released Australia-wide on National Close The Gap Day 2022. It has been screened everywhere from the Digital Facade at Melbourne’s Federation Square to remote communities in the Top End. The film has also been shared in workplaces, hospitals, schools and universities around the country.
Topic
Rheumatic Heart Disease Elimination
Year
2022
Partners
The Snow Foundation , Bupa Foundation Medtronic, Oranges and Sardines, Pfizer, MooGoo, Aspen Foundation, Cages, NT Cardiac, Royal Flying Doctor Service, Heart Kids
Outputs
80 minute feature, short films, streaming film, social media campaign, mass media publicity, website, outreach campaign.
New School
Imagine an education system that caters to the needs of all students, an equitable system that activates deep learning, inquiry and agency. New school is a thought-provoking film that will transform the way you think about education.
Throw your mind back to your high school years for a moment – what was it like? Do you remember a classroom with rows of desks all facing the teacher out front. What about the actual learning part –what can you recall? Was it all about the curriculum, or did you feel a sense of community and connection too?
Whether you enjoyed your education or not, high school played a critical role. In many ways, a nation’s future relies on the education its children receive. But while our world has shifted significantly over the last century, our basic schooling model has remained the same.
So, how will Australia transition from the current school system fuelled by standardised testing to completely rethink how to best serve the students of today and tomorrow?
New School gives voice to principals, teachers and students as they grapple with the realities of the current education system and asks: if you could build a new school, what would it look like?
Through the stories of three remarkable education communities that are reimagining the concept of ‘school’ altogether, viewers are asked to consider what types of environments will best equip students to succeed in the 21st century.
New School explores compelling new approaches that are transforming education as we know it, providing examples of programs and spaces already in action. This new vision places students at the centre, inspiring educational institutions worldwide to recognise what the next generation of learners are capable of.
Topic
Education
Year
2024
Partners
LEA
Outputs
35 minute documentary short
Futurists World
WELCOME TO THE FUTURE
Today, we are regularly reminded by how divided the world is.
However, the future is not set, we can change our course, but only if we’re inspired to do.
Futurists World is an original video streaming and audio podcast series exploring different profiles of the future through the stories of scientists, innovators and thought-leaders around various themes including the future of society, technology, happiness and time.
The inspiration for Futurists World is Arthur C Clarke. Clarke was one of the greatest futurists of all time.
Futurists World celebrates the exploration of possible futures.
It is your home for big ideas about the future and how to shape the world of tomorrow.
Hippocratic
Dr Raj is a small man with a big dream: a pain-free India. His mission is to bring ethical practice to modern medicine through whole person care and universal access to the essential pain medicine morphine.
Now, this spiritual leader of ethical medicine shares the story of his life’s work, reflecting on effecting change in a country of 1.2 billion people – where corruption is rife, bureaucracy is suffocating and the unregulated ‘medical industry’ is driving millions of vulnerable families into financial ruin every year.
The Hippocratic Oath is a solemn pledge taken by physicians inspired by ancient Greek medical texts. It articulates the key principles of ethical medicine. And it is largely been forgotten by today’s medical graduates.
Dr Raj fell into medicine – a happy accident. He’s now one of the field’s most respected physicians, described by the New York Times as ‘the father of palliative care in India’, Raj is also an outspoken critic of the modern medical industry.
Hippocratic provides an intimate first-person account and supports Raj’s mission of a pain-free India, where universal access to essential medicines is available to all patients who need them.
18 Experiments in Gently Shaking the World
Year
2018
Partners
Lien Foundation, TPI Enterprises, Open Society Foundations, APLI, IAHPC, Moonshine Agency.
Outputs
90 minute feature film, 52 minute TV version, 18 short films, streaming film, social media campaign, mass media publicity, website, outreach campaign.
- Theatrical release in the USA, Canada, UK, Australia, New Zealand, India and South Africa.
- Extensive social media campaign.
- International TV distribution, Subscription VOD (Amazon Prime) and educational distribution (Kanopy Streaming).
- Extensive mass media coverage including the New Yorks Times and BBC Worldwide.
- Fundraising effort generating hundreds of thousands of dollars.
- Multiple awards and acknowledgements including the Humanitarian Award and Best Feature at the Global Independent Film Awards.
Take Heart
Rheumatic Heart Disease, or RHD, is a largely invisible disease that threatens the lives of over 30 million children and young people around the world.
Take Heart: The Quest to Rid Australasia of Rheumatic Heart Disease is an impact film that lifts the lid on this life-threatening disease that is 100% preventable.
Narrated by Logie & Walkley Award Winner, Mr Stan Grant. This powerful and provocative film is the first in a global series that focusses on Australasia – Australia, New Zealand, and the South Pacific.
The first peoples of this region – Indigenous Australians, New Zealand Māoris & Pacific Islanders – have among the highest rates of Rheumatic Heart Disease in the world.
Take Heart provides a first-hand account that explores how we can close this gap and prevent more children from succumbing to this completely preventable disease.
Winner of 9 Global Independent Film Awards, Impact Docs Award, and Accolade Global Film Competition.
The Quest to Rid Australasia of Rheumatic Heart Disease (RHD)
Year
2016
Partners
Aspen Foundation, Bupa, Snow Foundation, Heart Foundation, CSANZ, Cure Kids, World Heart Federation, NT Cardiac, RHDA, AMOSS, NZ Ministry of Health, SBS (NITV), ABC International, Moonshine Agency
Outputs
52 minute feature, 50 short films, action toolkit, photography exhibition, smart phone apps, DVD/ Blu-ray, email marketing, social media campaign, mass media publicity, website, translation in 16 first languages, Government advocacy, academic evaluation.
- Over 12 million people reached (iSentia).
- Broadcast nationwide on NITV and screened in prime time with 12 repeats.
- Television distribution in 45 countries through ABC International.
- Over 60 screening events in capital cities, regional centres, and remote communities.
- Screened at Parliament House Canberra, Legislative Assembly Darwin, and Federation Square Melbourne.
- Over 60 short films produced, including in 16 first languages.
- Hundreds of thousands of views online.
- Over 5000 Facebook followers.
- Informed pre-election political commitments of $68 million in 2019.
- Winner of 12 international awards..
LIFE Before Death
This beautifully filmed journey takes us to 11 countries. As we follow the remarkable health professionals battling the sweeping epidemic of pain that threatens to condemn one in every ten of us to an agonizing and shameful death.
Through the eyes of patients and their families, we discover the inherent humanity that empowers the best of us to care for those beyond cure.
This is an intimate, hopeful and life-affirming story of living well and dying better. It advocates for making the most of every moment in our life before death.
Filmed in the USA, Canada, Australia, South Africa, Ireland, Singapore, Georgia, Hong Kong, China, Uganda, and India.
The project is multi-faceted and incorporates a feature film, 55-minute broadcast documentary, 50 short films and numerous social media platforms.
Crisis in Access to Essential Pain Medicines (Opioids)
Year
2012
Partners
Lien Foundation, Mayday Fund, International Association for the Study of Pain, Institute for Palliative Medicine, Open Society Foundations, Pettus Foundation, Union for International Cancer Control, Moonshine Agency
Outputs
83-minute feature, 52-minute feature, 55 x short films, DVD, email marketing, social media campaign, website, translation in 16 languages.
- 350+ screenings worldwide in 60+ countries.
- Official World Cancer Day Event.
- Television broadcast in 7 countries.
- International film festival screenings in 6 countries.
- 1 million+ views online.
- 10+ conference screenings.
- 15+ million mass media impressions.
- AbaF (Creative Partnerships) Winner.
- UN Association Media Award Finalist.
- 8 Awards.
Little Stars
Little Stars is an impact film series that tells the surprisingly life-affirming stories of young people living with life-limiting illnesses.
Against the odds these youngsters are making the most of every moment thanks to the support of their loved ones, working in harmony with ‘palliative care’ teams.
Regrettably, not all conditions can be cured. However, many children with life-limiting conditions will live for years, if not decades. Currently, 20 million children can benefit from palliative care, but access remains an issue.
For those who are receiving care, the results are incredible. These remarkable stories show young people finding hope, joy and attainment in the face of the inevitable.
Little Stars is a film you will never forget. Presented by acclaimed British actor David Suchet CBE, the raw power, insight and emotional honesty of this definitive human interest documentary will leave a lasting impression.
Winner of Accolade, Best Shorts, Indie Fest and Impact Docs Awards and Japan Prize Finalist. Official Selection in over a dozen film festivals worldwide.
Children’s Palliative Care
Year
2015
Partners
IICPCN, Mayday, USCPRI, NP Foundation, CIMB Foundation, Hospis Malaysia, OSF, CPC Foundation Russia, Pettus Foundation, IAHPC, AIM Foundation, Children’s Hospital Westmead, CHCM, TSL, PCA, BK, Gruenthal, Al Jazeera, Moonshine Agency.
Outputs
52 minute feature, 25 x short films, photography exhibition, DVD/ Blu-ray, email marketing, social media campaign, website, translation in 15 languages.
- Television broadcast in 55 countries including Al Jazeera, Grupa Onet, and TRT.
- 50+ screenings worldwide.
- International film festival screenings in 6 countries.
- 100,000+ views online.
- 10+ conference screenings.
- Mass media coverage.
- Broad educational media distribution.
- Japan Prize Finalist.
- 6 Awards.
- Rave Reviews.
Life Asked Death
People living in these countries typically die younger and have less education and money. Asia is home to sixty percent of the world’s population. Many of these people live in developing economies.
That means less physical and human resources for essential public services, including health. The burden of a disease like cancer in countries like Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh is immense.
By the time it’s diagnosed, eighty percent of cancers in the developing world are incurable.
The result is a vast sea of human suffering. But there is a solution…
A medical discipline whose focus is to treat pain and alleviate suffering in all its forms.
That medical practice is Palliative Care. Services beginning to spread across the developing world have the potential to improve the lives of tens of millions of people every year.
Life Asked Death is a pro-social film about a revolution in healthcare.
Developing Palliative Care in Asia
Year
2016
Partners
Asia Pacific Hospice Network, Lien Collaborative for Palliative Care, Moonshine Agency.
Outputs
26-minute featurette, 5 x short films, email marketing, social media campaign, advertising, website, translation in 5 languages.
- Over 1 million views on Facebook and YouTube.
- High-level screenings in 7 countries.
- TV broadcast through Flame Distribution.
- Improved development of services.
- International conference & UN screenings.
- Improved political buy-in.
- 3 Impact Doc Awards.
Common Ground Canberra
Common Wealth explores the scale, scope and reality of homelessness in Canberra today. In the capital city of our Commonwealth – our political community founded for the common good – homelessness is growing at an alarming rate.
Common Sense asks its viewers to imagine how they would deal with the realities of homelessness. Australian politicians boast of our strong economic standing. The disposable household income of Canberrans is the highest of any capital city in the country. Yet in our national capital, homelessness is increasing at an alarming rate.
Common Ground seeks to identify a potential solution to the problem of homelessness in Canberra. Today, there is effectively no affordable housing available in Canberra. As a result, homelessness is growing rapidly.
The ACT and Federal Governments urgently need to identify and support initiatives that will provide long-term solutions to the problem. One such initiative is Common Ground – an international leader in the development of solutions to homelessness.
Ending Homeless in Canberra
Year
2013
Partners
Common Ground Canberra, Snow Foundation, Thyne Reid Foundation, Moonshine Agency.
Outputs
3 x short films.
- Multiple screenings in Canberra including at Parliament House.
- The project attracted philanthropic and Government funding of over $20 million.
- Film festival screenings.
- Thousands of views online.
- Mass media coverage.
