When people saw the short, Christmas-themed film “Love is a gift”, they were mesmerized by how simple and yet powerful the ad is. What’s more amazing is that the ad was made with a budget of only £50.
The Christmas video ad is shown to a young man who marks his calendar and purchases Christmas presents. He decorates his Christmas tree while waiting for Christmas.
When Christmas Day finally arrives, he listens to a tape where his mother starts to speak, saying “Hello” and greeting him “Merry Christmas.”
The next words his mother says suddenly bring tears to his eyes, “I wish I could be there to see how you’ve grown; to see what kind of man you’ve become. I know I will be so proud of you.”
By this time, viewers understand that the young man’s mother sends recording every Christmas and this is probably what blew them away.
The ad becomes even more sentimental as his mother ends the recording with a very sweet, tear-jerking message, “Before I go, let me tell you the story about the happiest day of my life: the day you were born.”
The viewers were devastated by the idea that this is the last recording of his mother before she died.
According to Phil Beastall, he created this film in 2014 but it didn’t get the attention of people until after John Lewis’ highly budgeted Christmas advert, “The Boy and The Piano.” They loved it enough to suggest that John Lewis should hire the creator of this low budget, heartwarming short film.
The video quickly went viral online and people began to praise Beastall for creating such a remarkable Christmas advertisement.
“People seem to like my film because it’s the story that shines through.” This was what Beastall said when asked about the people’s positive reaction to his film.
Regarding the film’s budget, Beastall humbly suggested that film or ad producers don’t always need a huge budget but just a narrative that creates a long-lasting impact on the viewers.
The response and online comments to the video have been overwhelming. A fan named Susan Prosessor shared a post saying, “This says everything about Christmas, without a single product being mentioned! Merry Christmas.”
This post shows that people are tired of Christmas ads that make people cry, but then promote products or services at their end.
Another supporter of the ad, Sue Charles says, “A zillion times better than the John Lewis advert and far cheaper to make and just so gorgeous and special. I sobbed.”
The John Lewis ad campaign highlighting Elton John’s life may be really disappointing for viewers but Phil Beastall admits that he liked the John Lewis Christmas ad and if the company would give him an offer to make festive campaigns, he would definitely grab the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
While it is easy to compare the Christmas ads, it’s important that viewers show respect for both and understand that different admakers have different methods of convincing people and touching their hearts.
No matter the budget, Christmas advertisements have one goal. That is to remind people of the true essence and value of Christmas and their relationships.
Watch the full tear-jerking Christmas video below created by Phil Beastall:
