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This Deutsche Telekom spot reminds DAVID of Children in Need's 'The Heaviest Backpack' film. The latter saw a boy carry the weight of a troubled home life on his shoulders; the former centres around a young woman with her own 'cross' to bear (more a sack than a cross, but you get the idea). For her, heavy is the message not sent to her mum after an argument.

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What are we to make of this extraordinary piece of content for Mango? More pertinently, do we judge it as a short film or as a piece of advertising? The yardsticks used to measure the two are very different, and as much as it succeeds as one, it looks to us as though it has badly failed as the other. What to do? What to do? Let's judge it as both... one after the other.

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This People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals commercial is redder than Rudolph's nose with a dollop of cranberry sauce on it. The charity claims over a hundred and eighty million animals will be slaughtered in the run-up to Christmas—suffice to say, it's the least wonderful time of year for PETA. There will be blood, not least in this 120" splatter flick.

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Comedy director Florence Noble is the daughter of a creative director and she was a copywriter at TBWA in London, Johannesburg and Auckland before setting her sights on a career as a filmmaker. This led to a number of collaborations as a writer and a performer, as well as a director, and it was in her role as an actor that she recently participated in Michael Duignan's acclaimed sci-fi comedy, The Paragon.

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Talk about a one-two punch from Disney. No sooner has the brand teased 'Toy Story 5', it's released another Christmas ad directed by Taika Waititi. Though 'Best Christmas Ever' is standalone in some respects, it's also meant to get viewers in the mood for Woody, Buzz, Jessie, Forky, and company well ahead of June 19, 2026.

New Signing

What can clients in the UK and the Netherlands expect from Outsider's new Irish director Tara O'Callaghan? "Technique, visual flair, and powerful narratives," no less.

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Is Christmas perfect? No. People argue, get stressed, lose track of time, forget to buy nuts… it's all a rich tapestry. Rather than iron out these flaws, Tesco chooses to embrace them with the help of agency BBH and director Jeff Low. From the moment a woman asks why the table is silent ("I had an opinion—that's what happened!"), you know you're in a good time.

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This ongoing campaign has now established such a powerful idea about the shape of modern Britain that it's a surprise that politicians aren't yet talking about the need to capture the support of EE families. In the latest instalment — the telecoms company's first ad explicitly made for Christmas — the festive season is presented as a cross between a logistical blur and a rave.

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Singer-songwriter Talia Rae dines alone in the promo for 'Blind in Love'. Glass of red wine in hand, she watches a couple (Tyra Richardson and Dominique Sands) on a 'date' at another table, though you can tell from each and every gesture that there's trouble in paradise. Rae takes little pleasure in it, as the lyrics to 'Blind in Love' reveal a romance turned bad.

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Aldi takes no chances with the small print in this 30" Christmas spot: "Santa Claus is real, but an actor. Please do not attempt." Now that everyone knows where they stand, Brian Billow's latest spot for the brand shows how clumsy Santa can be. Much like the one in 'The Santa Clause', he slips and falls off the roof, but not to his death (he grabs hold of some Christmas lights, the lucky sod).

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They say revenge is a dish best served cold—for 'Clash of Clans' players, it's been hard to serve it at any temperature. That's because the Revenge button has always been counteracted by shields, no ifs, not buts. Why have a big red button in your game if no one has a chance to use it? The cast of this entertaining commercial would sure love to know.

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James Austin Johnson has played Donald Trump on 'Saturday Night Live' since 2021. As the latter threatens to go beyond parody once and for all, the former must keep up somehow. He's not short of material, that's for damn sure—next on the agenda is the White House ballroom set to cost $300m (£225m). To make this and other 'improvements' a reality, Donald hires the Property Brothers (both played by Miles Teller).

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Need a lift? Danny Brown might have room in his car, but—as the promo for 'Copycats' shows—it'll be a tight squeeze. Director Rollo Jackson's camera turns 360 degrees to reveal an after-show party crammed inside a limousine. If the Detroit rapper wanted some down time, he should have walked home instead.

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For J D Sports, two hundred and eighty-six is the magic number—that's how many smartphones it gave to young people between the ages of sixteen and twenty-five to help make its Christmas ad.

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The much talked about John Lewis Christmas ad concerns itself with the difficulty of communicating across a generational divide, and although this fil for Vodafone adopts a very different approach, it is just as effective at drawing attention to this increasing problem, and deserves to be seen as another important contribution to improving strained familial relationships.

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The Hawkins, Indiana branch of KFC has seen much better days. Ravaged by the effects of the Upside Down, it would fail an inspection on the spot. Underneath the floor, however, is a skeleton staff that uses old-school technology to keep Hawkins fed. When an order comes in by fax, no less, someone must evade military trucks and worse to deliver the goods.