Dreaming of an Orange Christmas

Give us an overview of the campaign: what is it about and what was your role in its creation?

The campaign is based on the observation that Christmas is not really the magical, perfect time everyone hopes it will be. Apart from the vagaries of winter, it’s a period that demands a great deal of planning and there’s always a high risk of failure. So we imagined a Hollywood-style musical in which people in the midst of their Christmas struggles ironically sing the classic Andy Williams number, “It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year.” In the end, the lyrics make sense because when our characters excitedly unwrap their Orange gifts, they’ve apparently forgotten all their Christmas woes. Our role was to come up with the concept and the script and ensure that the idea was executed to its maximum potential.

Was the brief for this Christmas spot different from those in the past? If so, what challenges did that present?

We didn’t work on previous campaigns, but the brief seemed pretty similar to previous years. The challenge was to find a strong insight that spoke to everyone but didn’t necessarily rely on the sentiment we’re used to seeing in Christmas campaigns.

What inspired you to approach the campaign this way?

We looked for an insight about gifts and what this period represents. As most of us “celebrate” this time every year, I think we were initially inspired by our personal experiences – and what this period means to us as adults. As you get older the magic of Christmas wanes, although it's still nice to receive gifts! The musical form lends itself well to the Christmas universe and allowed us to play with the established codes while being ironic about the season.

What’s a “behind the scenes” story that only you know about?

It was probably the most studious shoot we’ve done, because we had to shoot a lot of scenes in a row, at night, with little sleep. Some nights, you could already feel the winter thanks to the cold and the fake snow.

Are there any seasonal ad tropes you think should be retired by now?

That question is not really in the Christmas spirit!

What is your favourite seasonal ad of all time?

Harvey Nichols: Sorry I Spent It On Myself.

Currys PC World: Spare The Act with Jeff Goldblum

What can we expect from your agency in 2019?
A wonderful year.

The advertising industry’s New Year's resolution should be…?

Like every year – more creative risk-taking by advertisers and agencies.