Walmart
“Black Friday Deals for Days”
Director
Being the first of four commercials for holiday season, Walmart debuted their ‘Truck to Trunk’ ad during Monday Night Football on October 18, 2021. The concept of the commercial was focused on the journey of new products entering a Walmart store from the delivery truck to inside the store with kids, and then going home with happy customers.
However, a chain reaction is set off when a shipment comes out of the truck and bumps into several LG Sound Bar boxes, then it goes through the doors hitting the hanging Skull Candy Headphones that bump into the on-switch for speakers that start playing music, and so on.
“Working with Walmart and realizing their vision for a clever four-part commercial series took trial and error to get the connected reaction timed just right. We had a lot of ideas on how things would connect reactively, putting them together, and then creating a flow in the filming to prepare the visual effects quickly and seamlessly. We accomplished that goal in this first of four commercials, filmed over two days, and in less than a month later, airing for the first time as a fully-finished commercial.”
Behind-the-Scenes Magic
Filmed in Vancouver, Canada in the early Fall of 2021, creating a Winter-time setting for the commercial needed some magic! Robert was definitely the right person for that. Robert has done many projects in Canada and felt totally comfortable transforming a Canadian location into an American neighborhood. Vancouver offers the authenticity of a real location.
His concept for this series of holiday commercials for Walmart was that, oftentimes the most joyful moments in life arise from a chain reaction of memorable experiences strung together. Here, with “Chain Reaction”, it brings those good vibes. From the warm fuzzies of overdue hugs to the ‘best gift ever’ jump for joy, we had an opportunity to create something timeless and impactful for Walmart customers this holiday season.
The look and feel of this campaign is cinematic, premium and yet grounded in reality which fits perfectly into the Walmart ethos, celebrating diversity and a sense of authenticity in our casting.
Robert has always had a real affinity for the holiday season; as a filmmaker and a father, there’s a boost of creativity that comes from the sense of wonder and pure joy that the holidays bring. It’s a special time of year when our imagination and our purest moments of joy come together.
In this series, from concept sketches to storyboards, to being on set making snow and creating the chain of reaction effects, Robert was able to achieve a perfect balance of heightened realism and human spirit which elevates this campaign and points all the joy in Walmart’s direction.