Why the new John Lewis ad reminds us of Disney

UK retailer John Lewis has released a new TV commercial, created by adam&eveDDB, that takes the form of an animated woodland tale that pays tribute to our most memorable childhood Christmases.

'The Bear & The Hare' TVC tells a classic story of friendship at Christmas - building on the longstanding John Lewis theme of finding the perfect gift for those you care about. It features the strapline 'Give someone a Christmas they'll never forget.'

The spot tells us the story of a bear that has never seen Christmas because he goes into hibernation during the winter. His friend, the Hare, is upset about this and decides to wake him up in time for Christmas, by giving him an alarm clock as a gift. The bear then finally gets to see Christmas for the first time.

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The ad film has been written by Aidan McClure and Laurent Simon and directed by Blinkink's Elliot Dear and Yves Geleyn. It has been created using hand-drawn animation combined with 3D sets. The ad is set to a cover of musician Keane's 2004 hit 'Somewhere only we know' sung by Lily Allen.

The campaign has a TV ad integrated with multi-channel activity including a book, Christmas card maker, social media, in-store windows, a digital outdoor projection, and a soundtrack single.

James Murphy, Founding Partner & Chief Executive, adam&eveDDB, said, "It's a privilege to create the advertising for the nation's best loved department store at Christmas and this year is no exception. Not only have we been able to push the campaign into new territory creatively, we've also been able to deliver a truly multi faceted campaign that offers an in-depth take on thoughtful gifting that we hope will appeal to the child in all of us."