M&C Saatchi LA Delivers Holiday Sparkle for New UGG Campaign

A dazzling chorus line and holiday cheer shine in a dynamic, two-spot campaign for UGG created by Timber for renowned advertising agency M&C SAATCHI LA. Classic boots are the new soft shoe in this festive dance-driven spectacular. 

“For us, the beauty of this concept was all in the execution,” says Ron Tapia, Associate Art Director at M&C Saatchi LA. “We needed to work as partners in bringing this vision to life, and ensuring it exuded all the joy, magic and cheer that UGG means for people all over the world.”

Working closely with the agency creative team, Timber artfully designed and directed the holiday campaign with the visual flair of synchronized dancers against a sparkling winter white environment. “Our collective goal was to focus the visual interest on the narrative of dance and the pop of the boots against a clean, inviting space,” explains Timber Co-Founder/Creative Director Kevin Lau. “It was ambitious and a complete departure for Timber. The campaign was an incredible opportunity, and one that required agency trust, collaboration, and extensive planning.” 

Timber, which has quickly forged a reputation for its design-informed production – began the process with traditional pencil boards to develop the foundation for the campaign’s bombastic, kinetic action. Inspired by Busby Berkeley and Broadway productions, the expressive drawn movements were translated into the vocabulary of dance by choreographer Becca Sweitzer, who was integral in casting the spots’ performers. A one-day rehearsal and a two-day intensive shoot were fueled by shared creative vision and the dancers’ ability to learn the complex sequences and rapidly respond to changes. To create the illusion of an expansive chorus line of dancers, Timber used long lensing and sweeping camera movement to selectively frame the action and provide further dynamics to each dance-driven story. Timber then took the project through post, with edit via Arcade and executed the effects and finish including set extensions and dancer duplications set to a vintage big band beat. 

“The team was a well-oiled machine where the concepted ideas quickly fell into step, kick and leap,” recalls Timber Creative Director Jonah Hall, “It was a thrill to see it come to life.”