The Evolution of the John Lewis Christmas Commercial
(or How to make a John Lewis Christmas Ad)
Every year John Lewis, the U.K. department store, makes a Christmas ad. They always go viral. John Lewis manages to garner excitement around their adverts every year before they’re even released, with rumors of its release date and storyline surrounding it as if it were a Marvel film trailer or the new iPhone.
Such excitement surrounding an ad is unusual. So how did John Lewis end up in this unique position? The Christmas ads of John Lewis have slowly carved out an identity for the brand. It’s an identity that has evolved in the company’s newest ad, “The Boy and The Piano”.
“Shadows”
Premiering in 2007 “Shadows” was John Lewis’s first Christmas advertisement. It was not the flashiest advertisements of the John Lewis’ campaigns but it was the start of an annual tradition. The advertisement shows a woman and her dog standing in the snow through a shadow formed by a combination of objects, assembled on screen. Unlike most of the later adverts “Shadows” focuses on the items, potential gifts, which are sold by John Lewis.
“Clues”
In 2008, we get another simple advert from John Lewis again focused on products, but unlike its predecessor, this one also focuses on the people who could potentially be receiving them. The ad’s goal is to present the wide range of offerings John Lewis has for the wide range of people in your life. This was the start of a steadfast staple of slowed down covers of classic songs being used in John Lewis commercials. In this case it was a cover of the Beatles’ “From Me To You”.
“The Feeling”
It is in 2009 where we get “The Feeling”. In this ad we see children opening gifts which seem more appropriate for adults, such as large shoes, expresso machines, and DSLRs. At the conclusion of the ad it is revealed that all the children are actually adults. It is in this ad where John Lewis begins using montages, a frequently used tool of John Lewis Christmas ads. The ad focuses on the moment when someone receives the perfect gift that takes them back to the Christmas joy of their youth. Again this ad focuses on the range of items John Lewis offers.
“A Tribute to Givers”
The 2010 advert follows in the footsteps of many of the ads which came before it. This one focuses on showing the wide range of gifts offered by John Lewis from your children to your dog. It also relies heavily on montage. It features a cover of Elton John’s “Your song” which of course goes on to be the core of the 2018 advert.
“The Long Wait”
In 2011, John Lewis released their first Christmas advert with a strong narrative through line. While “Shadows” was John Lewis’ first major Christmas ad , the popularity of “The Long Wait” is what really started the annual tradition. “The Long Wait” follows an excited boy impatiently counting down the days until Christmas. At the ad’s conclusion we see the boy rush to give his parents a gift on Christmas morning. The ad is particularly emotionally evocative because of how it subverts expectations. We expect the child to be excited to receive. Instead he’s excited to give. This ad marks a clear shift from the initial ads which look at a wide range of products, instead focusing on a single gift.
“The Journey”
With 2012’s “Journey” John Lewis Christmas ads began to move towards the surreal and fantastical. A persistent snowman in pursuit of the perfect gift for his snowwoman, travels across fields, forest, and mountains to the shop where he finds her gift. This advert like many of the ones which follow it focuses on finding a specific gift which is tailored to a specific character’s situation. So rather than an abstract idea of a gift, like what is presented in “The Long Wait”, we see a specific gift (gloves, a scarf, and a hat). This would go on to be the trend in all of the adverts which follow.
“The Bear and the Hare”
In 2013, we get the first and only John Lewis advert to feature 2D animation. Given the proliferation of 3D animation, 2D animation, particularly in this pencil drawn style, has become a thing of the past. By choosing 2D animation (or rather what looks to simply be 2D animation) as a medium the advert is able to hit on the viewer’s nostalgia. Like its immediate predecessor, the film features a fantastical element (anthropomorphic animals) and a specifically tailored gift (an alarm clock).
“Monty the Penguin”
In 2014, we got “Monty the Penguin”. This was the third advert in a row where we saw anthropomorphism at the center of the story. The advert revolves around a single gift of a penguin meant to soothe Monty’s loneliness. We see throughout the film a young boy observing the loneliness of Monty the penguin before coming up with the gift which would act as a solution. The film is about the thought process that goes into getting the perfect gift for someone.
“The Man on the Moon”
In 2015 we got “The Man on the Moon”. This one has the surreal fantastical element of a man who lives on the moon at the center of the story. We also see the reoccurring element of finding a gift for someone else. These gifts often presented in John Lewis adverts tend to be a single item which somehow fulfills or helps to fulfill an emotional yearning. In the case of “The Man on the Moon” the simple gift of a telescope helps, like in “Monty the Penguin”, the man feel less alone.
“Buster the Boxer”
In 2016 we see “Buster The Boxer”, the third John Lewis Christmas advert to feature an anthropomorphized animal at its center. This advert does not focus as much on finding the right gift for someone though we do see hints of this. “Buster the Boxer” instead focuses on the joy associated with Christmas and the childlike excitement which builds up as Christmas approaches. It shows visually shows the pent up eagerness that is finally released on Christmas day.
“Moz the Monster”
In 2017, “Moz the Monster” again plays with fantastical elements and the discovery of a perfect gift. In “Moz the Monster” we see a child too afraid of the dark to sleep at night. He imagines a friend, Moz, to ease his fears. Eventually, after days without a good night’s rest, the child receives the gift of a nightlight to help him sleep. In this story the gift is meant to help soothe a little boy’s fear of the dark.
“The Boy and the Piano”
This year’s “The Boy and the Piano” works differently than the previous adverts in one significant narrative way. The ad works backwards, starting in the modern day and reversing to the moment when Elton John first receives the gift of a piano on Christmas day. The previous ads revolve around the moments leading up to selecting and giving the right gift for someone. “The Boy and the Piano” shows the other side of this: the long term effects a gift can have.
The ad could represent an evolutionary shift for the brand. It abandons many of the signature characteristics of John Lewis Christmas ads. Unlike previous ads, the film does not take place for the most part during the holiday season. It does not contain fantastical elements or anthropomorphism. It even does away with the mainstay of using a cover of a classic song, instead opting for an original. Most notably, the film is based in the true story.
It does have some of the elements of previous ads. It’s aesthetically beautiful. It relies heavily on nostalgia. It’s uses montages and is emotionally engaging. But what really makes John Lewis Christmas ads stand out is that they do not tend to focus on the gifts or the moment a gift is received. Instead they focus on the moments surrounding a gift. They focus on the moments that make the gift valuable. They do not focus on what gift someone brings but rather what a gift could bring to someone.
