FCB Montreal

Brand: Y des Femmes de Montréal (YWCA)

Year: 2024

“It Needs to Stop” is a chilling reminder that for many women, violence isn’t fiction.

Created for the Women’s Y of Montreal, a community organization that supports women facing violence, isolation, and vulnerability, the campaign draws a powerful parallel between cinematic terror and the real-life fear many women endure.

Launched during Halloween — a time when horror films dominate screens — each spot reimagines an iconic horror scene to reveal a devastating truth: for some women, the horror never ends.

As overall crime rates in Canada decline, incidents of violence against women continue to rise. This campaign brings that reality back into focus, using familiar Halloween imagery to raise awareness and inspire empathy.

Three 15-second TV spots aired on Halloween and in the following week, with extended 30-second versions shared on social media. The message was clear and impossible to ignore: violence against women isn’t fiction — it needs to stop.