TBWA\Media Arts Lab has packed a lot of emotion into its holiday commercial for Apple, The Dreamer. It tells the story of an imaginative boy growing with artist in his soul, and the parents who help him reconnect with his imagination when young adulthood pushes his creative life aside. The nearly four-minute film, directed by Melina Matsoukas, with cinematography by Bradford Young and artwork by Hebru Brantley, explores what it means to give someone more than a gift – belief in the creator they are yet to become.

The story is underscored by Strawberry Guy’s Give Me a Dream and puts MacBook Neo at the heart of a deeply personal gesture. A gift from his parents, his first MacBook becomes a tool for rediscovering his artistry. The story is personal for the people who brought it to life. Matsoukas, Young and Brantley drew on their own experiences as young creatives with big dreams, shaping a film about their creative possibility and the people who nurture it.

“My goal with work is to create pieces that move people and create change in the world.  I saw the opportunity to do that with this project and was fortunate to work with a brand that had the courage to do so.  In this moment in the world, to deliver a message that inspires people to follow their passions, to protect our artists, and to look at the world as a canvas of possibilities, is something I’m very proud to have been a part of,” stated Melina Matsoukas.

Brantley created every piece of artwork seen in the film, from the boy’s early drawings to the animated character that brings his rediscovered creativity to life. His artwork traces the boy’s evolution as an artist, giving visual expression to his creative world. He developed the final character on MacBook Neo, moving between analogue and digital as he worked.

“Our experiences shape what we create. My mother saw the artist in me before I could see it in myself, and her belief gave me the confidence to explore that – which I’ll continue to honor. That’s why this story is special to me. The right tools can help us unlock our creativity. For the young artist in the film, the MacBook Neo is also a reminder that his parents see the potential in him, and an invitation to reconnect with it,” Hebru Brantley commented.

In Creating the Art, the behind-the-scenes film for @helloapple, Brantley takes viewers inside that process, from early iterations to the artwork coming to life on set. He also reflects on the person who first recognised his own creative potential, his mother. “She saw it first and most,” he says.

That early belief helped him recognise what making art could mean. “I could create, I could make something from nothing.”

Across the film, the campaign brings a familiar Apple conviction to life – everyone has the potential to create something remarkable. Sometimes, it takes someone else to help us see it.

Credits: 
Agency: TBWA\Media Arts Lab 

Production Companies: Prettybird & De La Revolución
Director: Melina Matsoukas
DoP: Bradford Young
Artist Collaborator: Hebru Brantley 
Edit: Final Cut 
Post-Production: Pariah
Colour: Color Collective
Sound: Lime