Not very long ago, about twenty years, a majority of everyone’s time was spent enjoying meals with family. In the US (and probably other western countries) that has declined by 25%. And while 84% of Americans wish they shared more meals together, only one-third of families regularly sit down at the table. We’re all so busy few of us have noticed. The Campbell Company sauce brand, Rao, and Goodby Silverstein & Partners set out to make family meals a priority again…

…by showing people how many (or how few) possible meals together they had left.

Rao’s and Goodby Silverstein & Partners surveyed more than 1,000 people and conducted in-depth interviews with 200 people to explore mealtime habits and uncover who people miss connecting with most. They selected three to feature in a film directed by Los Angeles duo, Aqsa Altaf and John X. Carey, who also worked on Dove’s famous Real Beauty Sketches.

The emotive four-minute film, Limited Time Only, begins with people sharing familiar reasons for the number of meals they share with people they love. Those people were then handed a limited-edition Rao sauce. On the back label was a number – 94, 192…That number was an estimate of how many meals they had left with their kids, mother, sister…

Then Rao surprised them with a family meal.

The film extends Rao’s Make Time platform, for the brand whose slow-simmered sauces give people back time to spend on a meal together. The platform covers that spans premium video, social, influencer, public relations, retail media and owned channels.