Veneno

Social media is culture’s arena for ascending icons. In harnessing social channels to expand the audience for Veneno on HBO Max, our campaign created awareness around one of the greatest trans icons in the world, La Veneno. In paying homage to the legend inspiring the show, the creative surfaced and humanized today’s transgender and non-binary experiences.



The objective was to create an impactful, cultural moment for the trans and LGBTQ+ communities to celebrate the life and story of La Veneno, while sparking meaningful dialogue and connection on behalf of HBO Max. We crafted strategic partnerships to produce a content series featuring prominent and impactful members of the trans community in the LGBTQ+ space – designed to break the echo chamber of owned media properties and extend reach to like-minded and targeted audiences. As the core of the message, testimonial style social vignettes and shareable content translated the microaggressions and affirmations the Trans Community hears and sees everyday.



We enlisted actor and model Indya Moore, writer and performance artist Alok Vaid Menon, model and activist Laith Ashley as well as dancer Leiomy Maldonado to bring our campaign to life. We co-created an educational, inspiring digital content campaign which was divided into three categories:



Peacock Moments: Thumb-stopping graphic treatments expressed the fierceness of our talents’ passion, personality and drive.

Mentor Moments: Impactful and heartfelt advice from talents’ future selves, designed to inspire and mentor younger generations.

Translations: From transgressions to terminology, talent shed light on communication and community constructs.




The campaign expressed present-day mentorship for young people in the process of self identifying – inspired by La Veneno and Valeria’s relationship. The results reflect a conversation sparked in the community, garnering mass attention and celebrity engagement while supporting tune-in for the show.



From Janelle Monae's comment on Indya Moore's Human By Orientation Peacock Moment to Kevin McHale's custom peacock GIF and beyond, the content awakened discussion between icons to unlock measurable results. 126 pieces of content drove 85,601 social engagements and 3,378,710 impressions to date.