A brand film builds awareness by telling people who you are, what you do, and why. It doesn’t necessarily do the hard sell or chase an action. Instead, it shows a stranger what you stand for, reminds your staff why they show up every day, or announces a change in direction or a new mission to the world.
It’s evergreen and designed to be used across different spaces, from website homepages to corporate events, and online platforms to company meetings.
How do you tell a brand film from an advert?
Look at the intent. Length and budget tell you nothing, as a brand film can be anything from 30 seconds to 3 minutes.
Specifically, a commercial has a defined slot to fill and an action to prompt, and a product film has a launch date. After watching, the viewer should be in no doubt what they’re supposed to do.
On the other hand, a brand film might have neither (although it can have both), which is its strength and its danger. With no concrete offer to lean on, it has to earn attention by being worth watching and communicating a purpose. This could be a message from a CEO, an entertaining actor- and VO-led narrative, or a spotlight on an important cause.
That said, brand films can still drive actions. A charity film might naturally encourage the viewer to donate. A university video could prompt further research from potential applicants. And a change of direction may lead a customer to question their loyalty to a competitor. However, these are always secondary to the core message.
What does a brand film do that an ad cannot?
It works in rooms an ad never enters.
The same brand film might open an investor presentation and live on the homepage for three years. It plays at the all-hands and greets every new hire in their first week. Few things a marketing team make get asked to do that much, for that long.
That’s why we treat a brand film as a long-term asset. A campaign is judged in weeks. A brand film is judged by whether people are happy to press play on it in year three. For example, our brand refresh film for Scope is still being put front and centre over two years after we made it.
What can’t a brand film do?
They can’t do it all. In our experience, brand films fail when they attempt too much. Trying to sell a product or service while communicating a message just confuses the viewer and dilutes both. Assets for adverts and social cut-downs can always come from the same shoot, but the distinction needs to be clear.
Our Creative Director Tom Staniford always asks clients, “How many balls do you want the viewer to catch by the end?” They’ve only got two hands, so catching one is easy, two is doable, but three isn’t going to happen.
What types of brand films are there?
Brand film is an umbrella term, and a wide one at that. These are the formats we are asked for most.
- Hero films, the flagship piece for a major brand campaign.
- Founder and origin stories, where the people who started the thing explain why.
- Brand refresh films, built to launch a new positioning.
- Culture films, made for recruitment and for the people already inside.
- Brand-led product films, made to say what a product means beyond its launch.
The format follows the message. Studio Underd0g wanted a first brand film that felt nothing like a luxury watch campaign. Instead, it became a surreal tour of a fictional watch factory, with the founder and his own team in the cast.
Likewise, Scope needed to launch a new positioning, so disabled actors sang and signed to The Chemical Brothers on the streets of Stratford. Same umbrella, wildly different films.
Who is a brand film for?
Who’s in the audience? It is a question worth some thought.
Customers, of course. Staff, candidates, investors, partners and the press are watching too. But the internal audience is often the tougher crowd. They can tell when a film is flattering a company, communicating a culture that doesn’t exist or simply not doing the story justice.
That makes the brief plain. The film has to be accurate enough for the people inside and interesting enough for the people outside. Miss the first, and it gets buried without a word; miss the second, and it is beige.
As a result, a brand film is one of the most inward-facing things a marketing team ever commissions. The process can help you evaluate your culture and make sure your brand passes the proverbial sniff test to the wider world.
And knowing that helps us help you, as our Creative Director, Tom says:
“The best creative process starts with a brief from a client who understands who they are and what they want to achieve. Knowing your brand’s tone of voice and how much appetite you have for risk is vital. Sometimes the most ‘boring’ brands produce the best films by being willing to make themselves uncomfortable.
It’s also essential to know your audience, who you want the film to reach, where it’ll be used and your budget range. Coming to us with three examples of films you like, and three you don’t, with reasons why, gives us a strong starting position.”
How do you know if you need a brand film?
Usually something has shifted: a rebrand, a new chapter, a company that has outgrown the way people describe it. Sometimes it is a founder who is tired of explaining the same thing in every meeting. They would sooner show it once, properly.
If you have to sell a specific thing by a certain date, a brand film is the wrong tool. A commercial or campaign will do it better. If the need is for people to understand who you are long after the launch, this is the one.
When you get that far, brand film production in London is what we do best. We would be glad to hear what has shifted for you. Contact us today to get started.