Domestic Violence is more common in a woman’s lifetime than diabetes or depression.
This reality is only exacerbated when considering the past year’s events (COVID-19), forcing many in abusive relationships to be trapped in their homes with their abuser.
The effects of this are evident, with the National Abuse Helpline receiving a 65% increase in calls alongside many heavily relied upon women’s refuges closing as a result of the pandemic.
We produced this animation to highlight not only domestic abuse throughout lockdown, but also the mental effects of living with an abuser: feeling cornered in your own home with seemingly no way out or solution.
Animation, and more specifically the sensitive qualities of digital hand-drawn, is a perfect route to take to present qualities such as mental health and the feelings of abuse. Using any other medium, these themes would be hard to present in a way which is conscious to the subject matter yet impactful.
Fortunately, on the 29th of April this year the domestic abuse bill was signed into law, finally providing a legal definition of domestic abuse in conjunction with new police powers aimed at protecting those vulnerable.
If you or anyone you know is a victim of domestic abuse, please do reach out.
National Abuse Helpline – 0808 2000247
