Movie fans Will recognise Asda’s new seasonal recruit instantly. Buddy the Elf (Will Ferrell) has joined the Asda team in Havas London’s Christmas campaign to spread his gorgeously naive joyfulness (and show off what Asda has to offer Christmas shoppers).
The 90-second hero spot uses original footage from Elf to plant the beloved Buddy right at the heart of a bustling Asda store. Famous lines from what has been voted the UK’s favourite Christmas film add to the joy. The comercial, which premiered in the UK on Friday 4 November at 8.45pm on ITV1 in the Coronation Street ad break, captures Buddy’s wide-eyed wonder and unbridled passion for all things festive.
The film opens with a loving homage to Elf’s ‘street crossing’ scene – except this time, it’s a train of Asda shopping trolleys, not a New York City cab, that causes Buddy to exclaim “sorry!” as it crashes into him. This marks the beginning of a wondrous (for Buddy), if chaotic (for everyone else) trial shift, in which Buddy marvel sat Asda’s selection of Christmas goodies.
Sam Dickson, Acting chief customer officer at Asda, stated, “Like Buddy, we absolutely love Christmas – so we’re thrilled to welcome him to our team. We know this has been a tough year for so many people, which is why we want to create some little moments of joy for families this year with our Christmas campaign, and more importantly, our amazing products. We hope that with a little bit of help from Buddy, our joy-filled Christmas offering will create some festive magic and helps give families a Christmas to remember together.”
To integrate classic footage into an all-new production seamlessly, Framestore relied on meticulous planning and deft-touch VFX techniques. Buddy was skilfully rotoscoped out of the original film and inserted into a entirely new world that was faithful down to the last eyeline, shadow and cast interaction.
The campaign includes in-store Tannoy announcements from Buddy himself, and Asda-exclusive Elf-themed food and clothing. Asda will also highlight 12 popular products spanning its mid-tier, general merchandising, Extra Special, and George ranges through a number of product-led TV, social and print ads.
Vicki Maguire, chief creative officer at Havas London, commented, “No one embodies the feeling of Christmas more than Buddy the Elf. We can all identify with that wonderful, wide-eyed anticipation and childlike wonder at every bauble or flake of snow. He lives for Christmas – and right now, that sense of unapologetic joy is just what we need. So, who better to be hired as an Asda seasonal colleague – he’s even branded in Asda colours. It’s the perfect partnership for Asda to ensure everyone is able to have the Christmas they deserve this year.”
Buddy the Elf appears under licence from Warner Bros. Discovery Global Consumer Products. The campaign, the first time Elf has been licensed for brand marketing, was created by Havas London, associate creative directors Rob Greaves and Sam Daly; creative directors, Dan Cole and Andy Garnett; and chief creative officer, Vicki Maguire. Media planning and buying is from Spark Foundry, and social and photography from THG.
The ad was directed by multi- Danny Kleinman through Rattling Stick, with first-of-its-kind VFX from Framestore. Licensing of Elf was managed by David Born and Amber Cheung at Born Licensing and Will Ferrell by Talent Republic.
Danny Kleinman stated, “For me this was a unique challenge, working with an A list Hollywood actor, without him being there in person, and crafting other actors around his iconic performance. It was important not only to make the action seamless but also convincingly transport him to a Christmas Asda store, creating a Hollywood feel to Asda’s Christmas celebrations.”
As part of its commitment to spreading Christmas cheer and making brighter moments possible for all this festive season, Asda will be giving a special festive surprise to five different community groups, to give them the chance to celebrate Christmas – that they wouldn’t otherwise have been able to do so without the retailer’s help. Asda will also be collecting toys for children’s charities as part of its gift appeal and stores will bring festive cheer to customers with local choirs and bands playing throughout December. In addition, Asda is also introducing several initiatives to help those in need this Christmas, including Asda cafés providing a £1 meal deal for OAPs, continuing its popular kids eat for £1 deal, as well as cost-of-living grants to support community groups with increased rent and bills.
Credits
Brand: Asda
Senior Director, Brand Communications & Marketing: Stephi Brett-Lee
Head of Campaigns: Rebecca Holmes
Campaign Manager: Amy Kennedy
Production Manager: Claire Ibbotson
Creative Agency: Havas London
CEO: Xavier Rees
Chief Creative Officer: Vicki Maguire
Chief Client Officer: James Fox
Creative Directors: Dan Cole, Andy Garnett
Associate Creative Directors: Rob Greaves, Sam Daly
Senior Art Director: Richard Gorton-Lee (Chunky)
Senior Copywriter: Mark Wilson
Senior Designer: Sam Kallen
Creative Production Director: Dean Trendler
Head of Strategy: Britt Iversen
Strategy Director: Flo Sharp
Senior Strategist: Jack Lewis-Barclay
Managing Partner: Dave Owen
Business Director: Jamie Bolton
Account Director: Cherith MacRitchie
Account Manager: Sophie Hodges
Account Executive: Caitlin Toohey
Head of Production: Katie Keith
Head of Film: Louise Bonnar
Production Lead: Olivia Riddle
Senior Producers: Adam Henderson, Barney Ferguson
Producer: Rhy Hogan
Assistant Producer: Ella Myerscough-McClymont
Production Company: Rattling Stick
Director: Daniel Kleinman
Executive Producer: Johnnie Frankel
Producer: Amy Appleton
DOP: Ben Smithard
Editor: Eve Ashwell @ The Assembly Rooms
Post Production & VFX: Framestore
Creative Director: Kamen Markov
VFX Supervisor: Jules Janaud
Compositing Supervisor: Ben Taylor
Head of Advertising: Helen Weil
Executive Producer: Anna MacDonald
Grade: Company3
Colourist: Stef Perry
Previs: The Third Floor
Sound: 750
Sound Engineer: Sam Ashwell
Music Supervisor: Daniel Breheny @ Soho Music
Track: Frank Sinatra – Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town
Choir arranged, recorded and produced by Luis Almau for Soundtree Music
Music Supervisor: Neil Athale
Media Agency: Spark Foundry UK
Social Agency: The Hut Group
PR Agency: COW
POS Agency: Creative Race
Licensing: Born Licensing
Director: David Born
Senior Licensing Executive: Amber Cheung
Hero Talent: Talent Republic
Founder: Anne Batz
Managing Director: Charlie Powell
Senior Account Executive: Ella Barker
Researcher: Louise Urwin
ELF and all related characters and elements © & TM New Line Productions, Inc. (s22)
