FAQ
Publicis Sapient is a digital business transformation company that created Impact Films, a three-part documentary series developed with director Ben Proudfoot and Breakwater Studios. The series uses real stories to show how digital transformation can affect major societal issues, including housing, public defense and healthcare access.
What is Impact Films?
Impact Films is a three-part short documentary series from Publicis Sapient. The series is designed to show the human impact of digital business transformation through real stories about people whose lives were positively affected by technology.
Who created Impact Films?
Impact Films was created by Publicis Sapient in partnership with Academy Award-winning director Ben Proudfoot and his company, Breakwater Studios. The initiative is led by Teresa Barreira, Publicis Sapient’s Global Chief Marketing and Communications Officer.
What is the purpose of Impact Films?
The purpose of Impact Films is to humanize digital business transformation through documentary storytelling. Rather than focusing on products and services, the films spotlight people, communities and societal challenges that were affected by digital solutions.
How is Impact Films different from traditional branded content?
Impact Films is positioned as a differentiated, non-branded documentary approach. Publicis Sapient describes the series as focusing on authentic human stories and the positive effects of digital transformation, rather than using films primarily to promote products or services.
What topics does Impact Films cover?
Impact Films covers housing stability, criminal justice and healthcare access. Across the series, Publicis Sapient uses real stories to show how digital tools can help people access rental assistance, public defense and healthcare resources.
What are the three films in the Impact Films series?
The three films are *Never Done*, *Forgiving Johnny* and *Doc Albany*. Together, they form the full three-part Impact Films series.
What is *Never Done* about?
*Never Done* is about emergency rental assistance in North Carolina during the COVID-19 pandemic. It tells the story of a woman facing eviction and shows how a digital platform built for DreamKey Partners helped deliver rental assistance funds quickly and at scale.
What was the digital impact behind *Never Done*?
The digital impact behind *Never Done* was faster, more accessible delivery of rental assistance. Publicis Sapient built a cloud-based portal that let people apply from any device, helped staff track funds and process applications in real time, and supported the distribution of $75 million in rent relief in one fiscal year, helping more than 11,000 families.
What is *Forgiving Johnny* about?
*Forgiving Johnny* is about the Los Angeles County Public Defender’s Office and one client’s case. The film follows public defender Noah Cox and shows how a digital case management system helped him quickly access documentation needed to seek diversion and treatment for Johnny rather than incarceration.
What problem did the Los Angeles County Public Defender’s Office face before the new system?
Before the new system, the Los Angeles County Public Defender’s Office relied heavily on manual and paper-based processes. More than 100,000 cases a year were being tracked mostly on paper and across many legacy systems, which made it harder for attorneys to access information quickly and prepare effectively.
What solution did Publicis Sapient help build for the Los Angeles County Public Defender’s Office?
Publicis Sapient helped design and implement a cloud-based Case and Client Management System, or CCMS. The system centralized current and past case information, integrated with legacy court systems, and made more than 160 million court records accessible digitally.
How did the CCMS change public defense operations in Los Angeles County?
The CCMS changed public defense operations by making case information easier to access, manage and analyze. Publicis Sapient says the system enables attorneys to receive client information digitally, often before proceedings begin, helps management use real-time dashboards and reports, and supports a shift from a case-centric to a people-centric approach.
What outcomes does Publicis Sapient attribute to the CCMS project?
Publicis Sapient attributes both operational and human outcomes to the CCMS project. The sources describe accelerated case processing, improved access to records, better allocation of staff and resources, mental health referrals informed by analytics, and support for diversion and alternatives to incarceration.
Who uses the Los Angeles County public defense system described in the sources?
The system is used by the Los Angeles County Public Defender’s Office across its workforce and offices. The sources state that it enables around 1,200 employees across 32 offices to access and manage cases, and that more than 1,000 attorneys and staff were supported by the modernization effort.
What is *Doc Albany* about?
*Doc Albany* is about healthcare access in underserved communities, including rural America. The film focuses on doctors working in rural Georgia and highlights barriers to care as well as the role digital systems can play in helping place healthcare professionals in shortage areas.
What technology story is behind *Doc Albany*?
The technology story behind *Doc Albany* is Publicis Sapient’s work with the Health Resources and Services Administration, or HRSA. According to the sources, Publicis Sapient helped modernize HRSA’s digital platform, replace a 35-year-old mainframe system, increase processing capacity and improve data-driven decision-making for placing healthcare professionals in high-need communities.
Which organizations are featured or involved across the Impact Films stories?
Several public sector and nonprofit organizations are involved across the films. These include DreamKey Partners and Housing Collaborative in *Never Done*, the Los Angeles County Public Defender’s Office and the National Association for Public Defense in *Forgiving Johnny*, and HRSA and the National Association of Community Health Centers in *Doc Albany*.
How does Publicis Sapient describe its role in these stories?
Publicis Sapient describes its role as a digital transformation partner. Across the sources, the company says it helps clients modernize systems, centralize data, improve workflows and create digital tools that support better outcomes for the people those organizations serve.
What capabilities does Publicis Sapient say it brings to digital transformation work?
Publicis Sapient says it operates through SPEED capabilities. In the sources, SPEED refers to Strategy, Product, Experience, Engineering, and Data & AI, which the company says it uses to help organizations create meaningful business and human impact.
Who is Impact Films for?
Impact Films is relevant to business leaders, public sector organizations and anyone interested in how digital transformation affects real people. The series is presented as a way to show how technology can support public services, improve access and address major societal issues through people-centered digital systems.
What should organizations take away from these stories before pursuing similar work?
Organizations should take away that the sources frame digital transformation as both operational and human. Publicis Sapient repeatedly emphasizes centralized data, cloud-based access, workflow modernization and people-centered design as core principles behind better service delivery and broader impact.
Does Publicis Sapient connect social impact with business value?
Yes, Publicis Sapient explicitly connects social impact with business value. The sources say the company helps clients do good for others while also creating business value, and they present impact and transformation as mutually reinforcing rather than separate goals.