Australia is in the midst of a silent epidemic, 3.5 million people are living with some form of hearing loss. However, many are in denial about their hearing loss, or due to it’s progressive deterioration, don’t know how bad it actually is.

As the global leader in implantable hearing solutions, Cochlear’s biggest competitor is not a rival brand – it is the inaction of their potential customers. Many are in denial. Untreated sufferers isolate themselves from social situations, losing connection with loved ones and face an increased likelihood of developing depression.

Cochlear decided to launch their first major consumer facing campaign, aiming to:

- Raise awareness of the prevalence of hearing loss and get the nation talking about it

- Encourage action amongst those who are in denial

- Connect sufferers with Cochlear for a consultation, to begin their path to rediscovering their hearing.

'Does Love Last Forever?' follows Jake and Xanthe over four decades from when they first fall in love, develop a shared love for music, mature and have kids, all the way to the present day where the film resolves by posing the question: 'Did love last?' Depending on the viewers hearing ability, the film has two endings. For those who can hear well, their relationship remains loving. But for those hard of hearing, the couple's relationship appears to deteriorate. Extensive patient data from audiograms informed the script that used certain words with consonants such as T, S and F which are harder to hear due to their higher frequency. The ability to lip read was gradually taken away, body language was choreographed to be interpreted negatively, and ambient background noises were introduced to create confusion for those with hearing loss. 'Does Love Last Forever?' is a hearing test in disguise.

Based on the insight that people with hearing loss are in denial, we developed a way to test their hearing, without them knowing.

‘Does Love Last Forever?’ is a short film with two different endings, depending on the viewer’s hearing ability. It’s a Hearing Test in Disguise.

The film follows a couple’s relationship over four decades, and poses the question “Did love last?” For those who can hear well, their relationship remains loving. But the film is scripted and produced in such a way that people with a hearing problem perceive the relationship to deteriorate.

The beauty of the idea lies in the parallel between the perceived deterioration of the on-screen relationship by hearing loss sufferers, and the growing disconnect they may be experiencing in their own life, due to hearing loss. This subtle reminder demonstrates the effects of a condition that they may have refused to admit.