Still abiding by stay-at-home guidelines, many Americans are looking for excuses to get outside and stretch their legs–among the most popular being taking the dog for a walk.

In this comedy spot for the Nutro brand of Mars Petcare pet foods, we see one dog being walked numerous times by multiple household members. However, the canine’s desire to take a walk slowly diminishes with repetition. All the more reason to feed our dogs NUTRO for the nutrition needed to keep their energy up for yet another walk around the neighborhood.

The commercial–titled “Who Wants a Walk?”–was created by BBDO New York which embarked on a unique challenge to produce the spot during shelter in place orders in Manhattan Beach, Calif. BBDO partnered with O Positive and director Jun Diaz. In order to bring the spot to life, the team had to find a talented DP who could safely shoot the work from his/her own home, which needed to come fully equipped with a family, a dog, and a grassy neighborhood to walk through. Colin Watkinson, ASC, BSC fit the bill perfectly and was able to film the commercial in his own home using his family as both talent and lighting/camera crew, and featuring their adorable cockapoo–Tucker–as the star. The production was mostly virtual to abide by social distancing guidelines with Diaz directing, and later editing, remotely from Los Angeles. The creative was produced in two weeks’ time from concept to post/edit with a minimal crew.

Credits

Client Mars Petcare/Nutro Agency BBDO New York David Lubars, chief creative officer, worldwide; Peter Kain, Gianfranco Arena, executive creative directors; Lance Vining, Gary Toit, creative directors; David Rolfe, EVP, director of integrated production; Amy Wertheimer, group executive producer; Julia Millison, music producer. Production & Editorial O Positive Jun Diaz, director and editor; Ralph Laucella, Marc Grill, exec producers; Devon Clark, producer; Colin Watkinson, ASC, BSC DP; Ken Licata, 1st AD.

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