The Wise Group is a social enterprise with a simple but important purpose – to lift people out of poverty and help them build better futures. Through mentoring, education and employment support, their person-centred approach transforms lives every day.
When the Wise Group approached Ping Creates, they wanted an animated film that could explain the human impact of their work – a story that would connect emotionally with audiences, inspire trust among partners and bring the unreported effectiveness of mentorship to life.
The Challenge
The Wise Group’s mentoring model is based on empathy and lived experience. Their mentors have walked similar paths to those they advise, making them well-placed to help people rebuild their lives after hardship.
Our challenge was to create a film that would:
- Capture the emotional truth of mentoring through authentic storytelling
- Appeal to a diverse audience, from service users to government partners
- Clearly explain how one conversation can change a life’s direction
- Work across digital and in-person settings, including social media, training sessions and probation offices
The animation needed to be relatable, emotive, and inspiring, showing that even one small act of understanding and support can have a ripple effect across communities.
Our Approach
At Ping Creates, we know that visual, emotional stories really resonate with audiences. Working closely with the Wise Group team, we based the animation on real-life case studies, developing a script that balanced honesty with hope.
The film tells the story of Andy, a single father struggling to stay afloat after losing his job. Using water as a recurring visual metaphor, we followed Andy’s emotional journey from the depths of despair to finding stability and pride through the Wise Group’s mentorship.
We adopted a minimal, hand-drawn animation style. Soft linework, fluid motion, and water imagery symbolised both vulnerability and renewal, from the sinking feeling of crisis to the ripples of recovery and change.
Our team directed the voiceover performance to sound natural and heartfelt – a genuine voice that reflected lived experience rather than polished narration. Subtle sound design and a simple musical score added to the film’s immersive emotional landscape.
The Solution
The final animation became a key component of the Wise Group’s communications strategy:
- Narrative Impact: A first-person story that brings the mentoring experience to life through empathy and authenticity.
- Visual Simplicity: Clean, expressive line animation with subtle water motifs linking each scene.
- Multi-Platform Use: Deployed across the Wise Group’s website, social media, internal training and external presentations.
- Accessibility: Designed for clarity and emotional resonance, engaging both professional and public audiences.
The animation was used in probation offices, social work environments and prisons, illustrating how mentoring can change lives – not through statistics, but through empathy and human connection.
Impact
As a cornerstone of the Wise Group’s outreach, the film helped build recognition and trust among partners, clients and stakeholders. It communicated the organisation’s vision with compassion and clarity – showing that meaningful change begins with understanding.
For the Wise Group, the animation deepened public awareness of their vital role in tackling poverty through relational mentorship.
For Ping Creates, the dream of transforming lives was hugely inspiring, and gave us another opportunity to use creativity in service of a building a kinder world.
Dreaming of an animation that communicates an important service?
