Max Arkell, Client Partner & Head of Account Management at Dark Horses, walks us through the creation of ‘Dare to Defy’—a documentary series that explores how sport can become more inclusive. Partnering with Nissan and Prime Video, Arkell discusses the evolution of the ‘Possibilities Project,’ the creative direction behind the series, and the lasting impact they hope to achieve.
Can you give us an overview of the campaign, and your role in the creation?
For a number of years, we’ve partnered with Nissan GB to tell stories around a lot of the Diversity, Equity & inclusion work they’re doing, through their ‘Possibilities Project’ platform. The evolution of that project and the profound impact those stories had had on people, including ourselves, inspired us to tell a wider narrative around inclusion in sport. ‘Dare to Defy’ is a documentary series which looks at how sport could become more inclusive. Whilst there’s some great work being done, there’s certainly more that can happen. Our series looks to explore that.
My official role on this series was ‘Executive Producer’ – I’ve partnered with Nissan GB for the last 3-4 years on the ‘Possibilities Project’; ensuring this story was delivered in the way that it was, in partnership with Prime Video and Electric Robin was my main focus.
Nissan Dare to Defy trailer
What inspired the creative direction behind this campaign and how did you land on doing a docuseries?
Dark Horses & Nissan have been telling various stories in the past as part of the ‘Possibilities Project’ which were predominantly designed for social / Youtube. We knew that when people watched them, they really resonated and they were genuinely enjoyed by our viewers. The problem we had though was scale – not enough people were being exposed to them; so we had the idea that telling these types of stories in the form of a docuseries made total sense. Partnering with Prime Video enabled us to tap into their huge audience and bring the scale these stories deserve.
How did you go about finding the right people to feature for the series?
Our production partners Electric Robin had a great research and casting team with lots of experience in sourcing the right stories and the right people to feature.
In a year’s time, how will you measure the success of this campaign?
For me, it’s all about creating change – if we can encourage as many different sports / organisations to continue investing in inclusivity – making it more accessible for all people, and in turn more people feel like they can partake in sports without feeling excluded, then that’s the main aim. The series culminates in Run to the Future, an event designed to cater for as many different demographics as possible, as the culmination of the series. We intend to continue this event in 2025 and hopefully other running events take influence and look to adopt a similar approach.
Did you learn anything new from the experience?
From a creative point of view, it was my first experience of working on something truly ‘long-form’. Like many others, I’ve been involved in creating content which is around the 8-10mins mark, but this was an entirely new process and really educated me on the complexities of creating television that’s compelling and something that people would actually want to watch.
Next, we hear from Nissan’s Content, Events, and Partnerships Manager, who shares insights into how the ‘Dare to Defy’ campaign aligns with Nissan’s commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion.
In what ways does this campaign underscore Nissan’s mission to support people from underrepresented groups?
Nissan’s commitment to DEI starts with their employees through the Nissan Social Program 2030, which has the goal of realizing an inclusive and exciting company that values uniqueness. Specifically in the UK, Nissan has implemented the Possibilities Project since 2022 and continues to support its staff through their internal Disability and Pride Networks.
How does this feed into the overall marketing strategy for the brand?
Nissan’s current marketing strategy is Defy Ordinary. Defy Ordinary is all about pushing boundaries and doing the unexpected, be that through providing experiences for people that no other brand can do, or by celebrating people doing amazing things. Dare to Defy looks to embody this philosophy throughout the course of the series by shining a light onto people who are prepared to go the extra mile and prove that anything can be possible if you put your mind to it.
You can tune into the series here.
