Director Mark Molloy helms Apple’s Xmas film ‘A Critter Carol’ via TBWA Media Arts Lab

December 10 2025, 11:09 am | BY Kim Shaw | No Comments

In the lead-up to Christmas, Campaign Brief is shining a spotlight on the season’s most anticipated campaigns from around the globe. As these campaigns roll out, we’ll be rounding up the highlights to keep you in the loop.

 

Apple has launched its 2025 holiday film “A Critter Carol”, which captures the joy of unexpected friendship, told through handmade woodland puppets and brought to life entirely on iPhone 17 Pro. Directed by award-winning Australian filmmaker Mark Molloy, the film celebrates creativity, craftsmanship, and the power of iPhone 17 Pro’s camera, allowing anyone to tell cinematic stories with the camera that’s always with us.

After a hiker drops his iPhone 17 Pro in a snowy forest, the device is discovered by a group of handmade puppet critters – a raccoon, bear, rat, owl, deer, squirrel, and others – who film themselves in a joyful musical sequence inspired by “Friends” originally recorded by Flight of the Conchords. The music video showcases the new camera’s advanced camera capabilities, including Center Stage, Dual Capture, and 8x zoom.

All nine puppets, from the curious raccoon to the gentle bear, are handmade with practical craft techniques and meticulous artistry. The typography used throughout the campaign is also meticulously handprinted from wood blocks.


Agency: TBWA Media Arts Lab
Director: Mark Molloy
Production Company: Smuggler + Unit Sofa (Prague)
Post-Production Company: Untold (VFX), Trafik (color), Barking Owl (Sound Design), Racket Club (Mix)
Editing: Work Editorial, Stewart Reeves Editor
Director of Photography: Joost Van Gelder
Music: Friends by Flight of the Conchords
Music Composition: Walker
Music Editorial: Model Citizen
Puppet maker (raccoon, rabbit, mole, wolf, owl, squirrel, rat, deer): Puppets Magic Studio 
Puppet maker (bear): Zdar Sorm 
Puppet designers (Bear + Bird): Denisa Grimmova and Jan Bubenicek
Puppet stylist: Katarina Ťazarova

 

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