Creating Christmas Magic for Mr Kipling

A conversation we had in November with a client went something like this:

Them: “We need a Christmas ad, it’s for mince pies!”

Us: “Great! Is this for next year?”

Them: “No! We need it in a month!”

Us: “Let’s do it!”

There was something about this shoot that was exciting to the whole team as soon as it landed. These mince pies weren’t just your standard ones, they were the new, luxury line and the client was clear on their premium vision. Most of us have always had festive shoots happening throughout the summer so shooting something this close to Christmas was a nice change and certainly got us into the Christmas spirit…cue the festive tunes!

The brief had come over from Mr Kipling’s team within Premier Foods, our old friends who we have done many shoots with over the last few years. We agreed to take on the brief if they could match our speed in sign offs, which we knew they would, so off we went! 

The Creative Vision

We kicked things off of course with a few creative routes for our clients to choose between - three to be precise. After a close decision between a festive party evening for a few friends or Santa stealing a few pies for Mrs Claus - we got our sign off. With the mince pies being the star of the show, we get to see our female lead plating them up as if she has lovingly crafted them herself before welcoming in her friends for a cosy evening of festivities. 

Of course the time limits were intense so when looking at the approved creative, we had lots to consider on how we can streamline our production to be as efficient as possible.

Planning and Logistics

Having our own studio space and adaptable set builds, last minute shoots are a lot more feasible for projects like this one. However, the casting, booking resource and styling is still very prominent and so looking for ways to actively manage this in a short amount of time is crucial. 

Availability comes first, do we have internal capacity within post to ensure we hit the deadline? Is the studio free? Once we have aligned our internal team we start putting out feelers - in this case we needed a MUA for talent and a food stylist. Luckily, through experience (and also Cal’s Linkedin) our network has grown massively and so very quickly we had everyone we could need pencilled and ready to go.

Casting took place alongside set building and logistics. We put together a detailed deck with 10 models to chose from with our old friend Chiara landing the spot.

Pre-production is always a collaborative effort between teams ensuring that all bases are covered and that the timings work, with some speedy sign offs from the Mr Kipling team we were able to keep all areas moving and get everything locked in with plenty of time prior to the shoot.

Set Design Magic

Watching the set come to life piece by piece was definitely a highlight for the whole team. It started off with choosing new paint colours for the flats and shopping for a huge amount of props, this task was shared between our producer and studio manager, who were in their element.

Tracking the budget whilst sticking to the premium brief was crucial when shopping for the set and not the easiest task, but getting creative and sticking to a colour palette meant the process went seamlessly. We went for darker colours and jewel tones to keep the space looking luxurious and avoiding anything too tacky.

This set build was a bit of a different one, we of course needed the kitchen set where we see the styling of the Christmas spread but we also needed a hallway as the friends enter the scene. To save on building a whole new set, Cal got creative with lighting and dimensions and within half an hour we had transformed the walls from the kitchen into a cosy hallway.

Our trusty interchangeable kitchen space made for an easy set up with granite worktops (more on these later) and navy cupboards which we of course covered in lamps and fairy lights along with a lot of sparkling tree ornaments. With the christmas tree tucked in the corner the mood lighting really pulled the whole scene together.

Production Challenges and Solutions

Despite being a dreamy shoot, they never come without a few minor hiccups. The first hurdle being those pesky worktops. After a last minute client request for a colour we weren’t currently stocking, the race was on. Lucky for us, our studio is surrounded with kitchen and bathroom showrooms so after a few conversations and trips over the road we had arranged for the counters to be delivered the next day…meaning the morning of the shoot. 

The waiting game was tense but we knew that the delivery fit into our shoot schedule and upon the dark counters slotting into place we knew we had made the right call. A perk of being a smaller company is definitely our flexibility and ability to adapt to last minute changes without a hundred blockers - there are few things that can’t be resolved with some creative thinking and teamwork.

Post-Production and Editing

Once again, the pace to get this edited and over to the client was tight. Working closely with our in-house team we had the first edit over for approval by the end of the next day - you can’t ask for much quicker than that!

After a couple of tweaks we then went into the grade, something that is often overlooked by brands as they don’t always understand the power that colours can have on the final product. This allowed us to elevate the edit to another level, keeping in line with the brief of showcasing the pies as luxurious.

To conclude, this shoot was certainly up there as a Dead Pixel favourite for 2023. Shooting in such a beautiful set, with a wonderful team for a really tasty product is the dream and something the whole team definitely appreciated. 

We never allowed the time pressures to get to us, instead we made the most of a Christmas shoot actually in the festive season, decorating with Christmas music blaring. The love that went into this production despite the rapid turnaround is undeniable when watching the final product, stay tuned for the release as it will be out VERY soon.

In the meantime, have you tried Mr Kipling’s Best Ever Mince Pies? If not, maybe our advert could convince you to…