Make The World A Refuge

Renowned actor Billie Piper has partnered with Refuge for ‘Make the world a Refuge’, a campaign that explores many different forms that domestic abuse can take and the impact on survivors.

Having starred in a host of films and TV shows, Refuge ambassador Billie will now feature in a new campaign developed by AMV BBDO to highlight the many subtle and insidious ways that abuse can manifest in relationships. These are stories that can’t be told and often aren’t told — and that Billie Piper lends her voice to, giving them a platform whilst protecting their anonymity.

Central to the campaign is a two-minute film directed by BAFTA winning 'I Hate Suzie' director Georgi Banks-Davies, which depicts Billie Piper performing real-life testimonies from survivors of domestic abuse. These are the stories that so often cannot be told––it is too difficult or too dangerous. So they go unheard. But through Piper’s performance, these women’s words and stories can be shared, and given a real platform, breaking the silence, whilst protecting their anonymity.

The film demonstrates how abuse can present itself in a multitude of ways, beyond physical abuse, such as tracking a survivor’s phone or isolating them from their family and friends. Abuse has evolved, becoming more insidious, harder to name––from coercive control to financial abuse, to tech abuse. But also, in other ways louder: from headlines calling femicide a “crime of passion”, to memes about Amber Heard’s testimonial, to AI generated images as tools for abuse. Violence and abuse against women show up in so many ways. But so does Refuge. As abuse evolves, so does Refuge––this film brings to light the forms of abuse that we should all know about but often don’t, but also shows the widening scope of Refuge’s work to support survivors.

One in four women in England and Wales will experience domestic abuse in their lifetime. While all forms of abuse can have a devastating impact on the wellbeing of survivors, Refuge will continue to support as many women as possible in helping them to rebuild their lives.

Abigail Ampofo, interim CEO of Refuge, said, “We are thrilled to be collaborating with Billie for this awareness raising film. Coercive control is a highly prevalent form of domestic abuse, but is often not talked about, meaning that perpetrators are not held accountable while survivors are unable to access the support that they deserve. This type of abuse is insidious, and a perpetrator’s actions may appear subtle at first, which means some of the warning signs can be hard to spot. It is a pattern of behaviours that escalates over time, and the impact on survivors should not be underestimated. Billie’s invaluable work with Refuge will help us to show survivors of coercive control that they are not alone, and we hope it will allow more women to be able to spot the signs. For all the ways in which coercive control can show up, Refuge will show up for survivors.”

Speaking about the new film, Billie Piper said, “Domestic abuse can happen to anybody. It does not discriminate, and it can leave survivors questioning themselves and their reality. Reading the words of survivors who have experienced such sinister forms of abuse was truly harrowing, but it is vital that more people are made aware of the many signs of abuse so that abusers can be held responsible. While it is horrific to know just how common domestic abuse is, speaking up is crucial in helping survivors realise that it is never their fault, and that Refuge is here to offer support.”

AMV BBDO creative team Lauren Peters and Augustine Cerf said, “Domestic abuse doesn’t happen in a vacuum. It’s not ‘just’ physical, or merely a private issue. It happens in the wider context of a misogynistic society. And as our society has evolved, so has abuse: becoming more insidious, creeping into every aspect of our lives, into our phones, our culture, our bank accounts, our streets as well as our homes. Refuge has evolved with it: showing up wherever abuse does. So, our ambition for this campaign, working alongside Refuge, survivors, Billie Piper and Georgi Banks-Davies, was to show the hideously vast spectrum of abuse and the many ways Refuge help. We wanted to tell the kind of abuse stories that don’t usually get told. Including the abuse that can often feel too small, on its own, to report to the police. Often, when we spoke to survivors, we heard them say heartbreaking things like “it’s not physical, but…” But it’s abuse. And abuse in all of its forms endangers the lives of women all over this country. It deserves to be told, and to be understood. Through Billie, and the emotional, truthful force of her performance, we could protect the anonymity of the survivors, whilst giving a voice to their stories.

It is a campaign extremely close to our hearts and was a privilege to work on. Whilst devastating in many ways, it has been inspiring, galvanising and hopeful too.”

Director Georgi Banks-Davies said, "Working with the teams from AMV, Rogue, Refuge and, of course, Billie herself was an incredibly rewarding creative process. Our challenge was to make a film that broadened the public’s perception of abuse. A common myth is that it’s only domestic abuse if it involves physical or sexual violence. In fact, many women experience domestic abuse without ever being physically harmed. It was super important for me to show the audience the diverse ways in which abuse can take shape, and that they are not alone in those experiences. Alongside this we also wanted to showcase that no matter the form of abuse, Refuge is there for you, can support you and has experts in place that understand exactly what you are going through.

Billie is quite simply the bravest actor I have ever worked with, and she encapsulates the different experiences and personas of the survivors’ testimonies so powerfully and sensitively. This was an extraordinarily important project for me and I’m incredibly proud to be a part of such an important campaign."

The creative work follows AMV BBDO’s impactful 2020 collaboration with Refuge, The Naked Threat. That campaign urged the UK government to make threatening to share explicit images of others an illegal offence—a form of abuse often used to control and manipulate women. As a result, the government introduced legislation making such threats a crime.

To support the short film, versions of 60, 30, 15 and 6 seconds will run in social media and cinemas across the UK for the next four weeks.