How many people does it take to make a TV ad? Over 20 people in this case! A director, choreographer, make-up artist and stylist to name just a few – not forgetting of course our star of the show, Jack. He’s got some real moves hasn’t he? We think we like the floor slide into the hallway best…
We had a Covid officer on board also keeping everybody safe, and all the marketing team who would normally have been there were watching from their own homes in Bristol through a live link-up to the cameramen. They could see directly down the lens of the camera to make sure everything was just right.
Filming started bright and early at a large and beautiful house in Chester – with enough space for 20 metres of social distancing let alone 2 metres! With “Ain’t No Stoppin’ Us Now” blaring out around the house, we soon had it stuck in our heads and were all singing along.
Jack danced his pink and purple socks off all day long; he danced in the living room, then the kitchen, the garden and the hall! Luckily, in between he could grab five minutes in our rise and recline chair. He might just have nearly nodded off at one point – and who could blame him after all that activity?
We brought our own sunshine along with us, in the shape of amazing light rigs set up outside the window. And that lovely atmospheric feel with the beams of light streaming in was actually achieved with the help of a smoke machine! (Shh don’t tell anyone else the tricks of the trade…)
The family you see Jack face-timing in the advert weren’t really there either – it was pre-recorded and loaded onto the iPad. Although getting those cute laughs and smiles out of the children still wasn’t straightforward!
And then of course there was little Winnie the dog – what a pro! She did the head tilt you see right on cue. Getting her to stay put as Jack danced past on the other hand – not so easy. She just wanted to play!
Working with both children and animals during a global pandemic and conjuring up sunshine in the middle of winter – what can we say? We love a challenge here at Oak Tree! But we got there – and by 7.30pm it was a wrap!
We hope you like the finished ad as much as we do – tell us your thoughts over on our Facebook page.
Watch the TV ad in full:
