Square continues its legacy of visionary campaigns with “Made to Order” promoting the company’s Square Online service through seamless, choreographed movement, texture and whimsey. Directed and edited by Nikki McMorrow of GLP Creative, “Made to Order” is her fourth collaboration with Square, having previously directed several brand films for their US and Canadian markets.
The playful stories, with interwoven characters and scenes, are told through kinetic shots, subtle performances, layered blocking, and vibrant production design. In the Retail-focused spot, doting pet owners place and receive orders on-the-go through their local pet shop’s Square Online platform. In the Restaurant-focused spot, a group of hungry gamers order falafels from a popular Mediterranean café, demonstrating the robust capabilities of the café’s Square Online platform.
“Square cultivates teams that are fresh and collaborative, and I’m extremely grateful for what we create together,” notes Nikki McMorrow. “They are also authentically focused on inclusivity and bring these values into their work. This opens the door for unique perspectives and more adventurous ways to tell a story. From casting to cinematography to blocking, production design and post, this campaign was an opportunity to flex the artistry and showcase my style across several disciplines.”
Dynamic camera movement, visual effects and choreographed transitions are the crux of the “Made to Order” campaign. To achieve the variety of moves in the spots, McMorrow employed the use of the Arri Trinity 2 camera stabilization system. Operated by Ari Robbins (Everywhere All at Once and La La Land) the Trinity 2 delivered an impressive range of motion, speed and mobility.
McMorrow is a director who honed her creative voice developing, shooting, and producing noted and popular unscripted and documentary shows, followed by a leap into agency life before uniting these experiences as a commercial director with GLP.
“Nikki’s preparation is next level, from treatments to boards to decisions at every stage of production. I’m consistently impressed with how she visualizes, communicates, then brings her creative vision to life on every project,” says GLP EP Abe Sands.
“My GLP family is a constant source of inspiration. The work is outstanding,” praises McMorrow. “My EPs, Smitty and Abe, bring a wealth of expertise and are skilled advocates of the director’s vision. It’s a great partnership.”
AICP’s Demographic Reporting Initiative Expands Categories To Reflect Client and Agency Requests
AICP has announced that an updated template for its Demographic Reporting Initiative is now available. Originally launched in October of 2021, the Demographic Reporting Initiative allows production companies to provide their advertiser and agency clients with insight into the demographic makeup of the people on the crews of their commercials and brand content. As with version 1.0, the 2.0 iteration was prepared in cooperation with a consortium of industry payroll companies. This updated version of the Demographic Reporting initiative has greatly expanded the listing of gender identity categories, and added the ability for production staff to include their veteran status in the U.S. Armed Forces. These reports will provide AICP member production companies with anonymous and voluntarily provided breakdowns on these demographic categories, which can in turn be shared with agencies and advertisers upon request. More information on the Demographic Reporting Initiative can be found on the AICP website here. The updated Demographic Reporting Initiative framework was revised as a result of a continued push from marketers for this information, noted Sheila R. Brown, AICP’s Vice President, Equity & Inclusion. “The demand for demographic information from marketers directly and their advertising agencies continues to grow,” Brown notes. “As our communities become more diverse, the yearning to know the make-up of the production crews increases. And in our continuing goal to be more inclusive, we also wanted to offer our production crews more options to self-identify. The addition of more gender identity options, and the option to indicate whether an individual is a veteran or... Read More