From brief to broadcast in 4 days.
New Nordic's Beet Root Gummies started going viral, and the team had a TV media slot booked to push it further. They needed a 15-second broadcast spot, cleared by Ad Standards, in four days. There was no product photography yet, because the product had only just launched.
- Client
- New Nordic (Canada)
- Deliverable
- 15-second TV commercial, English, 16:9
- Timeline
- 4 days, brief to final file
- Clearance
- Ad Standards, approved on day 2
- Airing
- Booked national slots, multiple channels
A booked air date and no product photos.
The deadline came from the media plan, not from us. The airtime was already booked, so the spot had to be cleared and finished before the slot, with no room to slip. The product had only just launched, so there were no photos to work from.
The product, the brand and the approved claim.
The product itself, in hand, to study from every angle. New Nordic's brand guidelines, tone of voice and approved label, from years of working with the brand. And the claim its licence allows: support for peripheral circulation. We also used the four days to test the system we had built for developing and delivering video fast.
How the four days ran
- 1Day 1: direction and script. We wrote three different 15-second scripts, each with its own angle: everyday movement, the mess of juicing beets, and a pre-workout routine. New Nordic reviewed them with us, and the final script ended up as a mix of all three. Voiceover, script and voice were locked the same day.
- 2Day 2: storyboard and clearance. We sent the storyboard for approval while we built the cast, the keyframes and the first test videos in parallel. Ad Standards clearance came back that same day, which gave us the green light to produce.
- 3Days 2 and 3: production. Every shot was generated, reviewed against the storyboard and refined until it matched. Rough cuts were assembled as shots landed.
- 4Day 4: finish and delivery. Final edit, voiceover, music and sound design. New Nordic asked for one small addition, which we edited and sent back for approval the same day. Final file delivered.
Every line of copy stays inside what the product's licence allows it to claim. Each voiceover line got its own keyframe:
Before settling on one look, we explored three very different visual worlds: a nature film, bold colour blocks, and a dark gym lit in red. The final spot went with a warm, natural look.
What made it look real
Three decisions kept the spot believable on a TV screen, where AI-looking footage stands out fast.
One woman, every shot
We cast a single woman in her mid-40s and built her from several reference angles before making any scene. For the storyboard we locked two outfits: burgundy for the active scenes, white for rest. That kept her the same person from the walk to the workout.
Real movement, our cast
For the workout scene we started from real stock footage of a woman training. We replaced the room with a bright Scandinavian home gym, changed her clothing, and swapped her for our cast woman. The body movement stays real, which is the part AI still gets wrong most often. We use this technique on a lot of our work to avoid the stiff, floaty look of fully generated people.
Every shot directed, not accepted
Shots went through several rounds before they were approved. The opening walk alone went from a forest trail to a city park, then to a simpler frame with the focus on the front shoe and everything else soft. The product shot went from too busy, to nearly empty, to a balanced table with the gummies matched to the real product.
Showing the ingredient at work
The line "nitrate-containing beetroots" needed a picture that explained it without a new claim. A slice of beet floats on white, turns into a red blood cell of the same shape, then flows into the bloodstream. It links the ingredient to blood flow in about two seconds.
The result
The spot was delivered on day four and aired on New Nordic's booked national slots. It added to the momentum the product already had online, and Beet Root Gummies are currently out of stock.
What this project showed us:
- A fixed air date is workable when script, storyboard and clearance run in parallel instead of one after another.
- Real footage underneath beats fully generated motion for people on screen. We use it a lot for lifestyle shots.
- Claims shape the visuals. Working inside what the licence allows pushed us to explain the ingredient with pictures instead of extra words.
Footage and stills shown with New Nordic's permission.