MS Society’s Legacy Film

MS Society's Legacy Film

This powerful short film shares a moving story of love, courage, and hope — from a son who watched his mother face multiple sclerosis (MS) with quiet strength, to another MS-diagnosed person whose days are different in so many ways. Through their stories, we see how far MS research has come — and how leaving a gift in your will to the MS Society UK can change lives for generations to come. Every legacy gift helps fund groundbreaking research, provide vital support, and bring us closer to a world free from the effects of MS.

The brief

MS Society commissioned a legacy film to inspire supporters to consider leaving a gift in their will. The objective was to create a compelling, authentic piece that would show the transformational impact of legacy giving on MS research and support, while moving viewers from the challenges of the past, through the progress of today, to the possibilities of tomorrow.

The target audience was primarily warm supporters — people already connected to MS through personal or family experience — so the film needed to be personal rather than promotional, hopeful without being sentimental, and deeply respectful of the lived realities of MS.

The process

We developed the film around the narrative arc “From Then to Now to Tomorrow”, grounding the story in authentic voices from real legacy pledgers and people living with MS. Filming took place across two households in Surrey, with contributors including Steve Rebus, who shared how his mother’s experience with MS shaped his decision to pledge, and Lyndsey Shellard, a former MS researcher now living with MS herself, who is part of the groundbreaking Octopus trial.

Our approach prioritised dignity, accessibility, and informed consent, with contributors supported throughout the process. We combined intimate interviews with carefully considered supporting footage — from family photographs and personal mementos to moments of daily life — to give texture and humanity to the stories. The film balanced emotion with credibility, highlighting the MS Society’s role as the UK’s leading MS research funder and showing how gifts in wills provide half of their income, directly driving breakthroughs.

The Results

The resulting film captures the unique combination of authenticity, hope, and research-driven progress that defines the MS Society’s legacy message. It honours past struggles, highlights today’s advances, and invites supporters to play a vital role in stopping MS for future generations.

The project delivered:
-A 3-minute flagship legacy film and a short social cutdown.
-A suite of stills and supporting footage for wider campaign use.
-A call to action designed to inspire pledges and uptake of the Society’s free will-writing service.

The impact was clear in the charity’s feedback.

"A wonderful team of extremely talented people who understand legacy fundraising and the sensitivities and different messaging needed. They produced a film that subtly infers many things we didn’t have time to talk about, through clever photography. The team were really easy to work with and they listened and accommodated for everything we wanted/needed without any fuss. A wonderful team of highly skilled people who listened to our wants/needs and were great to work with. I’ll certainly recommend them to others. We haven’t yet released the film but the content certainly covers what we were looking for and we are confident it reaches the goals we set."