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Saatchi & Saatchi NZ and Doc Edge launch new digital tool to promote documentaries
Saatchi & Saatchi NZ and Publicis Production ANZ have unveiled a new campaign for the 2026 Doc Edge Festival.
Titled ‘F#&K the algorithm’, the campaign champions this year’s line-up of international documentaries that cut through algorithmic feeds with raw, topical and unfiltered stories.
At its heart is ‘the algo-rithm f#&ker’, a tool that invites people to swap screen time for screen time. By sharing their weekly screen time, audiences unlock festival discounts based on the hours they’ve lost to scrolling, turning algorithm time into documentary time.
Give people a way to fight back
Dan Shanan, co-founder and executive director at Doc Edge Festival, says: “Doc Edge has spent the last 21 years telling bold, inspiring and impactful stories and amplifying voices that matter.
“This year’s campaign with Saatchi & Saatchi really builds on that legacy by challenging the algorithms that increasingly decide which stories we see.
“With sold-out sessions and our strongest opening weekend yet, it’s clear audiences are responding and actively seeking out the stories that cut through their algorithms.”
Lee Sunter, Saatchi & Saatchi NZ executive creative director, says: “’F#&K the algorithm’ doesn’t just call out the problem, it gives people a way to fight back.
“‘The algo-rithm f#&ker’ transforms passive consumption into active participation, making the campaign something people do, not just see. This campaign wouldn’t exist without Alex and Dan at Doc Edge, whose belief in a festival that agitates and challenges perceptions made it possible. And our friends at Publicis Production, who crafted every detail, right down to every perfectly placed swear word.”
The campaign spans digital, social, radio, outdoor and cinema, pairing pixelated scenes from festival documentaries with the coded ‘algospeak’ people have adopted to avoid online censorship.
Running from June 24 to August 10, the 2026 Doc Edge Festival features 75 films, 40 visiting filmmakers and a programme exploring some of the world’s most pressing issues; from the realities of the Gaza conflict and the truth about sex work to the impact of AI on young lives.
