Instacart Shows an Unseen Side of the Holiday Season in Christmas Spot

Instacart gives audiences an emotional reset this holiday season with an immersive and intimate film, 'Big Sister,' highlighting an unavoidable human experience of lonesomeness that cannot be put to the side for compulsory holiday joy. Instead, the warmth in this film comes from performances directed to nuanced perfection by Love Song’s Justyna Obasi, whose loose and reactive camera work creates a lived-in atmosphere that feels as real as the central sibling characters.

Opening on a sparse, sombre apartment, a forlorn man’s solitude is interrupted by his sister and brother-in-law, who arrive to spend the holiday with him. Upon seeing his empty refrigerator, his big sister starts a family order on Instacart. Playfully adding and removing items from the cart in the same spirit as if they were at the grocery store, the mood slowly lightens and culminates on a family dinner topped off with a pumpkin pie that spells out “her loss,” connoting that a recent breakup brought on this sadness. Acting as a force of connection and ease, Instacart supports this family during a time of transition. Instead of solving the problem with a saccharine catch-all, Instacart makes life easier so the characters can be present and focus on what they have in the present moment: an honest holiday message that rings true to life. 

Justyna Obasi, director of the film, said, “Sadness is abundant in everyday life but rare in advertising. If we touched upon this nuance, we had to be delicate to make it real and compelling for the audience. The characters were not moving from a 1 to a 10 on the happiness scale just by getting an Instacart order. What makes these films special is that Instacart is aware that their job isn’t to fix your life, but it is meant to make it easier. That’s why I loved working on this campaign; it gives everyone permission to feel.”