Best Government Online Video Campaign, Best Of Show Online Video Campaign

For many people, using nicotine comes with quiet struggle, repeated attempts to quit, and the weight of shame—especially when stress, mental health challenges, and long-standing habits make quitting anything but simple or linear. Too often, stories about quitting reduce people to outcomes or advice. The Colorado QuitLine Stories campaign was created to tell a different kind of story.

Shot in a documentary style, the series centers participants as collaborators, not subjects. They were not scripted or coached, but invited to speak openly about their lives, their relationship with nicotine, and what quitting means to them—on their own terms. Filmmaking choices prioritized presence over performance, allowing moments of silence, reflection, and vulnerability to remain on screen.

Each story is grounded in meaningful places—homes, neighborhoods, workplaces, and outdoor spaces—using environment as a quiet narrative device to reflect routine, stress, resilience, and change. These visual choices deepen emotional truth without narration or instruction.

Across eight short films produced in English and Spanish, the series features diverse Coloradans—from longtime tobacco users to younger people beginning to recognize nicotine’s impact—representing different products, quit paths, and communities across the state. Together, the films challenge stigma and reposition the QuitLine not as a last resort, but as a human source of support.

Distributed through targeted digital placements during moments of pause, the work treats quitting not as a directive, but as a lived experience: complex, unfinished, and possible—especially when people feel seen.

Contributors:

Producer:	Brandon Zelasko
Director, Writer, Producer:	Elizabeth Costello
Director of Photography:	Colin Witherill
Producer:	Miranda Cheatham
Editor:	Summer Simpson
Gaffer:	Mary Jeanes
Producer:	Chelsea Andrews
Producer:	Maria Livingston

SE2

Location: USA