John Lewis’ Christmas spot "Buster the Boxer", created by Adam & Eve/DDB, was selected
by The Thinkbox Academy as winner of the November/December 2016 Thinkboxes award for TV ad creativity.
In the ad, a man assembles a trampoline in the garden on Christmas Eve while his daughter sleeps. Overnight, local wildlife play on it while Buster, the dog of the house, looks on enviously from indoors. On Christmas morning, Buster races the overjoyed girl to her present and beats her to the first bounce.
The aim of the ad, set to a cover of Randy Crawford’s One Day I’ll Fly Away, was to capture the joy of a gift that everyone loves and raise a smile after a year many found challenging.
"It embraces a sense of fun and magic, reminding everyone how it feels to give the perfect gift at Christmas," says John Lewis’ customer director, Craig Inglis. "We hope this ad will encourage more children to discover a love of British wildlife, and encourage support of The Wildlife Trusts."
Rachel Swift, John Lewis head of marketing, adds: "Christmas ads have become fiercely competitive, so we’re delighted to have received this accolade."
"Buster the Boxer" was directed by Dougal Wilson; the production company was Blink.
"Christmas with love" for Marks & Spencer, created by RKCR/Y&R, won second place in the Thinkboxes winners’ line-up. Ranked third was H&M’s "Come together", directed by Grand Budapest Hotel director Wes Anderson – another Adam & Eve/DDB creation.
Want to see more great work? Head to the Thinkboxes hub
Craig Inglis customer director, John Lewis
"The ad embraces a sense of fun and magic,
reminding everyone how it feels to give the
perfect gift at Christmas"
Credits
Client Craig Inglis, customer director, John Lewis
Creative agency Adam&Eve/DDB
Creative team Ben Priest, Ben Tollett, Richard Brim, Ben Stilitz and Colin Booth
Production company Blink
Director Dougal Wilson
