Burberry's Spectacular Holiday Ad Will Put a Spring in Your Winter Step
'Singin' in the Rain' hasn't been this fun since Gene Kelly
The style is so strong in Burberry’s latest ad that we briefly forgot to care about anything else, and that’s saying something. It features a cover of “Singin’ in the Rain” performed by Dreya Mac, which sets an infectious pace throughout.
Burberry’s chief creative officer, Riccardo Tisci, oversaw the campaign video, directed by Megaforce. It opens in a kebab shop, where a woman picks up her food and is warned by the vendor that it’s about to rain. “It’s fine,” she says, and goes out to meet her companion. Both are in Burberry outerwear, and as they begin walking down the street, a weird, arbitrary hail begins to fall.
Dancers Chantel Foo, Kevin Bago, Robinson Cassarino and Zhané Samuels engage in some epic footwork, choreographed by (LA)HORDE, dodging giant blocks of ice all the while. High Snobiety observes that the idea of fighting the elements is a tribute to the brand’s founder, Thomas Burberry, who started Burberry with a line of weatherproof outerwear for polar explorers.
This is a great way to see Burberry’s latest outerwear collection in-situ. It’s playfully functional, easy to project onto city life. It also feels like a tribute to a reputation the brand shook off only in the last few years: For over a decade in its home country, it was favored by football fans inclined to brawl, and was easy to counterfeit, lowering its luxury cachet.
Details like the choice of street—London’s Petticoat Lane, known for its brisk sales in luxury brand knockoffs—and the relaxed, layered vibe make it feel like Burberry has made peace with that heritage. The overall campaign will also star soccer player Marcus Rashford, who was instrumental in getting the government to change its position on enabling disadvantaged children to claim free meals over the holidays.
In addition to supporting Rashford, Burberry will also work with London Youth, Norbrook Youth Club in Manchester, Wide Rainbow Partnership, the International Youth Foundation, and the Woodhouse Park Lifestyle Centre, also in Manchester.
CREDITS
Directors: Megaforce
DOP: Katelin Arizmendi
Choreographers: (LA)HORDE
Styling: Ibrahim Kamara
Production company: Riff Raff Films
Vocals performed by Dreya Mac
Cast: Chantel Foo, Kevin Bago, Robinson Cassarino and Zhané Samuels
Post-Production: MPC
VFX Producer: Ryan Hancocks
2D Lead: Alex Lovejoy
3D leads: Fabian frank and Rob Richardson
Colourist: Matthieu Toullet
“Singing In The Rain”
Written by Nacio Herb Brown / Arthur Freed
Published by EMI Music Publishing Limited
Vocals performed by Dreya Mac.
Musical accompaniment performed by Lank & Tank for Twenty Below Music