Shot by Ashley Armitage, the commercial shows women doing everyday things — eating a late night snack or drinking a glass of wine — that have been apparently known to cause breakouts. Highlighting the shame women feel around it, the campaign urges viewers to do what they want anyway and basically, not give a fuck.

“We wanted to develop scenes that felt familiar; little vignettes of everyday life that we can all laugh at because we’ve been there before,” ZitSticka Creative Director Ben Tan says of the 90-second campaign video. “We also wanted to avoid telling our audience how to live a perfect life to achieve better skin, because it’s a bit more complex than that. Who are we to chastise others for indulging in ice cream after a long day?”

Created in collaboration with make-up artist Shideh Kafei, Armitage made it a point to not try to conceal the blemishes on the models — something that was integral to the photographer in order to keep the message authentic.

“It would be too easy to make a shiny campaign video and cast models with flawless skin,” said Melissa Kenny, Director of Communications at Zitsticka. “As newcomers to the skincare space we want to explore breakouts in relevant and meaningful ways, while infusing our tone-of-voice and humor. A key part of the ZitSticka ethos is bringing transparency to the acne space—a space typically glossed over, sidestepped or approached in a clinical light.”

For more information visit zitsticka.com.

Photo courtesy of ZitSticka