One act of kindness spawns another and then another in this touching pay-it-forward Xmas ad from retailer John Lewis & Partners and groceries/wine chain Waitrose out of agency adam&eveDDB, London.
The spot deployed the talents of different animators, illustrators and makers. The different styles of animation were blended and brought together by director Oscar Hudson of Pulse Films in a series of vignettes. The acts of kindness aptly translate into the title “Give A Little Love,” fitting for the yuletide, particularly in a tumultuous year ravaged by the coronavirus pandemic.
Animators who brought their talent and artistry to the piece include Sylvain Chomet, Anthony Farquhar-Smith, Chris Hopewell, Anna Mantzaris, Anete Melece, MegaComputeur, and Shotopop.
The commercial starts with a girl helping a boy to get his lost ball out of a tree with her umbrella, and a domino effect is set in motion. The boy comes to the rescue of a melting snowman, who then lends a hand replacing the tire of a broken-down car whose passengers deliver a bag of Waitrose shopping. The recipient connects with his lonely neighbor, a barber, who gives a boy an extra-special heart-shaped haircut. The boy passes a symbolic heart to his little brother while a flock of pigeons watch through a window. Touched by the boy’s act of kindness the pigeons help a hedgehog fly (he just wants to be in their gang!). The heart-shaped trail from the hedgehog plane is spotted by a nurse – who, inspired by the symbol of love, helps a little girl (the one we saw at the start of the film) to fix her glasses.
The action unfolds to a music track, “A Little Love,” performed by Celeste who also teamed with Jamie Hartman to write the song.
Credits
Client John Lewis, Waitrose Agency adam&eveDDB, London Richard Brim, chief creative officer; Matt Gay, Feargal Balance, creative directors/creatives; Genevieve Grandsen, Selma Ahmed, creatives; Sally Pritchett, TV producer; Nia Maclean, Adaeze Ndakoji, assistant producers; Simon Adamson, executive content director; Jessica Taylor, head of content; Lauren Booty, social media director; Phoebe Wright, social media manager; King Henry: Scott Silvey, Danny Tompkins, Paul Knowles (John Lewis) & Alex Fairman (Waitrose), designers/typographers; Anthony Falco, chief production officer; Ben Sharpe, Cave Ellson, head of integrated production; Martin Beverley, chief strategy director; Hugh de Winton, strategy director. Production Pulse Films Oscar Hudson, director; James Sorton, exec producer; Neil Andrews, producer; Ben Burdock, production manager; Anthony Farquhar-Smith, animation consultant; Daniel Landin, DP; Luke Moran-Morris, production designer; Selina Wong, costume designer; Kharmel Cochrane, casting director. Music “A Little Love,” performed and written by Celeste; Celeste, Jamie Hartman, songwriters; Leland Music, music supervison; Polydor, record label; Warner Chappell Music/Reservoir Media, publishers. Sound Design & Mix Factory Anthony Moore, Jack Hallett, sound designers/mixers; Deborah Whitfield, audio producer. Editorial Trim Paul hardcastle, Elise Butt, editors; Polly Kemp, offline edit producer; Ben Elkaim, assistant editor. Postproduction/VFX Untold Studios, London Neil Davies, ECD; Bruno Fukumomthi, VFX supervisor; Ian Berry, EP; Ellie Joseph, producer. Tom Humphrey, Emre Aypar, Jack Fisher, Antony Allen, Aurelien Ronceray, Leandro Vazquez, Lee Matthews, Thiago Vilas Boas, Richard Harris, James Pratt, Felicia Petersen, Solveig Lynde, Untold Post Production artists. (Toolbox: Flame, Nuke, Photoshop, Houdini, Maya, Z-Brush, Mari, Substance, Arnold) Animation Production HUSH London Sylvain Chomet, animation director; Ru Warner, Lydia Russell, producers; Ed Roberts, lead animator; Aaron Lampert, animator. Animation Production Not To Scale, London Anthony Farquhar-Smith, animation director, stop motion animator; Dan O’Rourke, EP; Marcela Ferri, sr. producer; Malcolm Hadley, Matthew Day, DPs. Andy Biddle, Steve Warne, stop motion animators. Animation Production Black Dog/Jacknifefilms, London Chris Hopewell, animation director; Rosie Brind, producer; Jon Davey, DP; Cadi Catlow, animator; Holly Jo Beck, set designer; Harry Jenkins, Jonathan Minto, modelmakers. Animation Production Passion Animation Studios Anna Mantzaris, animation director & animation; Lisa Hill, producer; Belle Palmer, EP; Donna Wade, DP; Hugo Vieites Caamano, VFX supervisor (shot at Arch Film Studio); MegaComputeur, animation director; Belle Palmer, EP, Mike Turoff, head of production; Anna Cunningham, producer; Jason Nicholas, head of CG; Dave Walker, VFX supervisor; Tim King, editor; Colin Perrett, SIM. Animation Production Anete Melece, character & background design; Stefan Holaus, animation. Animation Production Shotopop Casper Franken, illustrator/designer; Dipankar Senguptak, animation director (motion) and cel animation; Carin Standford, art direction; Samantha Friend, illustrator; Jong-ha Yoon, cel animator; Leo Evans, compositor; Georgi Chalakov, animator; Eliza Bone, Donna Marie-Howard, producers. Puppets Arch Model Studio Andy Gent, puppets; James Ward, character design.
The Ad Council, partnering with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Administration for Children and Families (ACF) and AdoptUSKids, launched a public service campaign, created pro bono by Edelman, which aims to inspire prospective parents to consider adopting a teen from foster care.
This centerpiece PSA titled “The Rewards”--directed by The Hudson Dusters (Michael Kuhn and Niles Roth) via Greenpoint Pictures--spotlights real adoptive families who have personally experienced the mutual benefits of adoption. This longer form PSA (and cutdown versions) begins with a touching display of openness and vulnerability as adoptive parents reflect on their adoption journeys and their initial questions and hesitations about adopting a teen. Then, in a deeply emotional turn, the adoptive parents witness their children recounting the profound rewards of adoption in their lives. The teens speak of the love they share with their parents and how the decision to become a family is reciprocal. The campaign directs viewers to the AdoptUSKids website to learn more about adopting a teen from foster care.
