The John Lewis 2014 Christmas commercial continues the theme of ‘thoughtful gifting’ by evoking the magic of make-believe at Christmas, as seen through a child’s eyes. Set to the track 'Real Love', the ad tells the tale of an unlikely friendship between a little boy, Sam, and his penguin best friend, Monty.
Creative Execution
The team spent months lovingly crafting Monty, then integrating him into the real-life environment; casting the distinctive Adelie penguin for their overtly expressive mannerisms.
The main challenge was to create a fully CG penguin who would behave authentically within the natural world and deliver a performance of real emotion to enhance storytelling. One element to achieve this and add greater realism involved the creation of an intricate feather system, where individual feathers were crafted from scratch.
The 3D team initially built a digital model and once his skeleton and muscle system were in place, a number of tests were carried out, determining his movement style and adding distinctive character quirks. The main challenge was conveying Monty’s emotions, without giving him human characteristics. This was not only conveyed in the face, it was in the way the whole character moved so there was huge focus on Monty’s physical performance.
The interaction between Sam and Monty was vital, therefore seamlessly compositing Monty into the shot footage was the biggest challenge for the 2D team. In addition, the team extended sets, added subtle effects including frosty breath and snow plus created a number of matte painted environments. For example, the sledging scene was shot in mid-summer in three separate locations.