The annual Christmas spending spree wasn’t exactly a spree in Australian this year. Retail spending was down as families reined in spending to manage mortgages, energy costs and a bit of a downbeat attitude to their finances. It could be that a lot of everyday German people are feeling less than buoyant about money right now. Although Germany is one of the wealthiest countries in Europe, there is rising poverty despite economic growth. Serviceplan has certainly captured German hearts with its film for discount supermarket chain, Penny. It’s the story of a single mother trying to manage in very difficult financial circumstances.
More than 22 million Germans have watched the film whose message is that Christmas Doesn’t Need Much, Only Love, nearly 15 million of those views on YouTube alone. The film has now been released globally.
It’s the story of a single mother trying to manage in very difficult financial circumstances. She can’t make her son’s wishes come true because she doesn’t have enough money but uses creative ingenuity to give him Christmas joy. Helping the emotive power of the film, a mix of live action and 3D animation, is Elton John’s Your Song, sung by Josephine van Schaik.
Serviceplan executive creative director, Christoph Everke, commented, “The film and its soundtrack express exactly what people in Germany are experiencing every day. They are getting by with limited resources and their successes are often down to the fact that they are stronger than people who have never had to struggle. The film is an homage to these tough people who do their utmost every day to care for their family.”
Studies suggest that this year in Germany, Christmas is forecast to cost each household an average of 476 EURO in total. However, Penny is using this year’s Christmas campaign to show that you don’t actually need to spend that much on a great Christmas, with the motto, Christmas Doesn’t Need Much, Only Love.”
The film reaches beyond the film. Penny is helping its customers to make their children’s apparently unachievable wishes come true. On the campaign website, penny.de/nurliebe, children could chat to the polar bear who features in the film and tell him their deepest wishes. As well as having many of their wishes come true, parents could look forward to winning a craft set that they can use to make homemade Christmas presents. 2,500 kits were produced to enable people to knit their own teddy bear for Christmas. Customers were able to win the knits by taking part in an online lottery.
Stefan Magel, executive board member retail Germany at the REWE Group and chief operating officer of Penny, stated that is an extremely important step because “as a discount supermarket at the centre of its customers’ lives, Penny wants to enable all of its customers to have a great Christmas. As well as good-value offers, for us this involves dialogue with customers. It is only when we really understand people’s requirements that a campaign can be more than an empty advertising promise. Only then can it become part of our customers’ daily reality and really ring true.”
Three documentary films were produced to support the campaign extension:
Credits
Lead Agency: Serviceplan Campaign
Executive Creative Directors: Christoph Everke & Alexander Nagel
Creative Directors: Matthias Schuster & Moritz Dornig
Copywriter: Alessia Coschignano
Art Director: Rebecca Labiner
Junior Copywriters: Nedim Aktas & Iasonas Baliamis
Junior Art Director: Elena Sorokova
Account Managements: Fabian Kleinmann, Frederike Enk & Julia Leibetseder
FFF Producer @Neverest: Jochen Hirt
Digital Agency: Plan.Net Campaign
Executive Creative Director: Michael Reill
Senior Copywriter: Marc Hermann Hofmann
Senior Art Director: Alexander Kneifel
Account Management: Nadège Jaussi & Franziska Borgwald
Production Company: Glassworks Amsterdam
Creative Directors: Hugo Rodriguez Rodriguez, Darren Macpherson & Rüdiger Kaltenhäuser
VFX Supervisors: Darren Macpherson & Rüdiger Kaltenhäuser
On Set Supervisors: Darren Macpherson, Rüdiger Kaltenhäuser & Kyle Obley
Art Director: Hugo Rodriguez Rodriguez
Lead 3D Artists: Darren Macpherson & Rüdiger Kaltenhäuser
Tracking and Camera: Jef Fleurkens, Aaron Smith & Davide Uccellani
Modellers: Matias Zadicoff, Esteban Pedrozo & Jose Manul
Character Styling and Texture: Matias Zadicoff & Esteban Pedrozo
Rigging: Tiaan Franken, Callum Austin & Jef Fleurkens
Animators: Darren Macpherson, Rüdiger Kaltenhäuser, Alastair Hearsum, Glenn Ewan, Casey Chelchinskey, Callum Austin, Jef Fleurkens, Roman Hinkel & Jon Park
Animation Assistants: Heidi Stohr, Hugo Perdiz & Zolna Minik
Lighting and Render: Darren Macpherson, Callum Austin, Jef Fleurkens & Rüdiger Kaltenhäuser
Particles FX: Roman Hinkel
Lead 2D Artist: Kyle Obley
2D Artists: Hugo Rodriguez Rodriguez, Maxence Peillon, Alexander Pattinson & Duncan Malcolm
Matte Painter: Hugo Rodriguez Rodriguez
Storyboard Artists: Hugo Rodriguez Rodriguez & Callum Austin
Concept Artist: Hugo Rodriguez Rodriguez
Editor: Benjamin Putland
Colourist: Scott Harris
Chief Operating Officer: Anya Kruzmetra
Senior Producer: Ariella Amrami
Post Production Coordinator: Salt Ibraeva
Travel Coordinator: Frankie Modugno
Production Consultant: Lauren Becker
Bidding Consultant: Rick Naude
Music Production: Sizzer
Singer: Josephine van Schaik
Music stylist: Jesper Gadeberg
Sound Mix: m-sound studios
Audio Engineer: Robert Miller
Shoot: Second Home Studios
Shoot Producer & Motion Control Operator: Chris Randall
Director of Photography: Sam Morris
Camera Operator & DIT: Luke Unsworth
Gaffer & Rigger: Ian Whittle
Studio Assistant & Prop Style Assistant: Amanda Haas
Miniature Sets: Clockwork Frog Films
Production Designer: Andy Farago
Carpenters & Fabricators: Steve Lafferty, Johnathan Lawrence & Simon Lipscombe
Specialist Model Makers: Alan Henry, Ruth Harrison, Paul Taylor & Sarah Right
Model & Prop Makers: Kat Simpson, David Riley, Abbie Skinner, Mark Heron & Steph Oakley
Soft Props & Fabrics: Lucy Sturley
Scenic Painter: Sara Watson
