https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mNbSgMEZ_Tw
Elton John is the star of John Lewis’ widely awaited 2018 Christmas ad, titled the Boy and the Piano, a short film about a gift that changed his life. The Independent goes behind the scenes:
The short YouTube video features a number of key players who helped produce the ad, including David Furnish, who is married to the iconic musician.
“The John Lewis Christmas campaign is an iconic part of Christmas now and has had so many warm memories and associations for us, with all of our Christmases, so to be asked to be part of that was a huge honour,” says Furnish, who is co-chief of the film company Rocket Pictures with John. “Seeing the accuracy, and the work that has been put into to creating everything, the attention to detail is fantastic, so it is very exciting to see, it is like taking a step back in time.”
Richard Brim, who is the chief creative officer at adam&eveDDB, the ad agency behind the film, reveals how the script was chosen from 300 submissions. “This one really stood out,” he says in the video. “And it’s the story of how a gift changes a little boy’s life. But the little boy just happens to be Elton John. From playing in pubs to laying down the first notes of ‘Your Song’ and then from there, it went stratospheric.”
The ad was directed by Seb Edwards, who has also shot campaigns for Vodafone and Hovis.
“He’s a brilliant director,” Brim adds. “He has a very subtle way of telling emotional stories and they just feel effortless. So, he felt like a natural fit for this script.”