New York-filmed Jollibee video offers a perspective of hope and gratitude in this challenging time

In the future when we look back on today, how would we describe the pandemic? What version of history would we tell?

This is the theme of Jollibee’s first internationally produced film developed by BBH Singapore, which reinterprets the brand’s tagline of “Joy of Family” in the context of the current pandemic.

When the pandemic broke out, everyone was unprepared and had to face an uncomfortable reality – that life as we knew it changed overnight. It was painful, scary and upended lives around the world. Yet it is in our darkest hours when we see what’s most dear to us – our families. From physically spending every waking hour together in lockdown to long video calls across continents, our family was what got us through. This was the year of the pandemic, but it was also the year of the family.

The 3-minute-long campaign film titled “A Message from the Future”, shot in New York and directed by award-winning director Law Chen, tells a perspective-changing story about the times we are currently living in, which will leave you feeling grateful for the time you have with your family, and how through it all it is the Joy of family that gets us through all the hardships.

In a departure from the brand’s usual campaigns, the current film adopts a sombre and realistic tone as it goes in the future to record a nostalgic and emotional story of a migrant Filipino family based in the US. Set in 2060, the film shows a grandfather recounting his memory of the pandemic to his grandchildren. The story starts off on a bleak note but gives way to hope and joyful family moments that could have only happened because the family spent more time together, a transition highlighted through the film’s progression from black & white shots to coloured ones.

Francis Flores, JFC’s Philippines Country Marketing head and Jollibee PH Marketing head, said: “Jollibee as a brand has been all about the joy of family, and while in our current times it may be difficult to focus solely on that aspect, we realize just the same that there’s a silver lining in all this. Coming from a powerful truth that we are spending time with our families more than ever, it has never happened before and may never happen again – we wanted this campaign to acknowledge the grim reality of the current pandemic but still give a positive message of hope. It’s all about appreciating these moments with them and finding the ultimate Joy with family. Our families have been a comforting factor for most of us in these tough times and we wanted everyone to be grateful for that.”

Jollibee is releasing this heart-warming digital short film as the grand culmination of the brand’s new Family Thanksgiving Month initiative. “The Family Thanksgiving Month is not just a celebration here at home. We’re hoping that all families, whether Filipinos living abroad or other nationalities, will be inspired to start a tradition of expressing their appreciation for their loved ones,” Flores added.