Golden Square lights up Christmas for the Co-operative
All was still and the world was at peace as Director Luke Scott descended the chimney at Golden Square to begin work on The Co-operative Christmas campaign. Operator Tim Rudgard warmed himself by a fake log fire DVD as our friends from TBWA sledged down from Manchester.
The Co-operative Christmas campaign was shot during a beautiful Canadian summer and so it came down to one of Golden Square’s talented Flame ops, Tim Rudgard, to create a warm and inviting series of festive spots. The mission began with turning the Canadian back lot into a sleepy English town enjoying the build-up to a snowy Christmas.
The 2D work firstly involved manipulating a large number of the Christmas lights, adding more in and increasing their intensity and colour. Tim also created a tree without lights so we could switch them on in post to enhance the impact. All of the store fronts were added in post and the interior shots (which were filmed in England) had to be seamlessly composited in. The feeling of winter was enhanced by adding rosy cheeks and adding textures to make the actors’ breath visible.
In 3D we lowered the height of many of the buildings and added roofs and 3D snow flurries which increase in density throughout the spot. The Christmas feel was further enhanced in the final scene by adding snow to the roofs and ground, adding additional coloured lights and adding the final grade. On the background the brand colours were overlaid on an evening sky sitting above the lights of a village in the distance. This is the first in a series of spots to be aired in the run-up to Christmas.