Global bottled water brand Fiji Water has announced a new marketing campaign to support American Film Institute’s (AFI) Directing Workshop for Women. The One Sip Forward initiative aims to raise up to $100,000 for the workshop.

As part of the campaign, celebrities will be encouraged to photograph themselves sipping Fiji Water products through the brand’s re-usable straws at award events sponsored by the company. For every photograph taken Fiji Water will donate $1,000 to the Directing Workshop for Women programme.

Consumers are also invited to get involved with the campaign by sharing selfies of themselves drinking Fiji Water through the straws accompanied by the hashtag #OneSipForward. For the first time, the straws will be available to buy directly from the company’s site with all proceeds going to AFI’s programmes.

After a successful launch at the 2018 Golden Globes Awards, the campaign is set to continue at the other award events sponsored by the brand this season. The next event featuring the campaign will be the Screen Actors Guild Awards held on 21 January, followed by the Critic’s Choice Awards and Film Independent Spirit Awards.

The promotional campaign follows high-profile debates surrounding the representation of female directors in the film industry. Fiji Water saw an opportunity to use their brand recognition and influence as a sponsor at major industry events to push for change. The vice-president of marketing for Fiji Water, Clarence Chia, noted the motivation behind the campaign, saying: “We all know great talent is out there, and we want to help support female filmmakers. Therefore, we’re teaming up with the AFI to launch the FIJI Water One Sip Forward program to support their Directing Workshop for Women.”

AFI’s Directing Workshop for Women is a practical training programme for those women with more than three years of professional experience in the arts. Tuition for the class is free – however, students are required to raise all funds necessary for the completion of their short film or series project.

The proceeds raised by Fiji Water will be used to help fund these projects. In addition, Fiji Water will share details of the current participants’ projects on their social media pages and website to encourage others to contribute.

Fiji water is not alone in its pursuit of corporate social responsibility commitments. Other bottled water brands, such as Waiakea, Volvic and Voss Water, have also launched various campaigns and projects. Waiakea support the Kama’aha education initiative which supports local Hawaiian students, Volvic partners with the Whole Planet Foundation, which seeks to alleviate poverty in the areas where the company sources its products, and Voss Water have established projects, such as building wind farms and reforestation, to reduce greenhouse gas emissions worldwide.