It's such a great, simple idea: Young Brazilians want to learn English. Elderly Americans living in retirement homes just want someone to talk to. Why not connect them? FCB Brazil did just that with its "Speaking Exchange" project for CNA language schools. As seen in the touching case study below, the young Brazilians and older Americans connect via Web chats, and they not only begin to share a language—they develop relationships that enrich both sides culturally and emotionally. The differences in age and background combine to make the interactions remarkable to watch. And the participants clearly grow close to one another, to the point where they end up speaking from the heart in a more universal language than English. The pilot project was implemented at a CNA school in Liberdade, Brazil, and the Windsor Park Retirement Community in Chicago. The conversations are recorded and uploaded as private YouTube videos for the teachers to evaluate the students' development. "The idea is simple and it's a win-win proposition for both the students and the American senior citizens. It's exciting to see their reactions and contentment. It truly benefits both sides," says Joanna Monteiro, executive creative director at FCB Brazil. Says Max Geraldo, FCB Brazil's executive director: "The beauty of this project is in CNA's belief that we develop better students when we develop better people." CREDITS Client: CNA Project: "Speaking Exchange" Agency: FCB Brazil Executive Creative Directors: Joanna Monteiro, Max Geraldo Digital Creative Director: Pedro Gravena Creative: Vinícius Fernandes, Bruno Mazzotti, Daniel Alves, Mauricio Bina Creative Technologist: Márcio Bueno Digital Production: Brave.ag Project: Lia D'Amico Technology: Gerson Lupatini, Caio Mello Account: Mauro Silveira, Alec Cocchiaro, Pedro Führer, Thiago Figueiredo Planners: Raphael Barreto, Lia Bertoni, Pedro Schneider Media: Alexandre Ugadin, Tiago Santos, Fábio Tachibana, Sandra Carvalho, Fábio Menezes RTV: Vivi Guedes, Ana Flávia de Lucca, André Fonseca Production Company: Hungry Man Director: Ricardo Mehedff Co-direction: Fábio Pinheiro Photographers: Fernando Young (Brazil), Grant Weiss (Chicago) Production Company: Hungry Man Account Production: Mariana Marinho Editor: Rodrigo Resende Managing Partner: Alex Mehedff Executive Production: Alex Mehedff, Rodrigo Castelo Postproduction: Hungry Man; Psycho Postproduction Supervisor: Rodrigo Oliveira Sound Producer: Timbre Client Supervisors: Luciana Fortuna, Nicadan Galvão, Diego Marmo, Ricardo Martins