Hornet’s Yves Geleyn Takes McDonald's on a Whimsical Journey Through the British Countryside

Director Yves Geleyn plays with scale and proportion in a new 60-second spot for McDonald's.

NEW YORK -- On March 18^th, McDonald’s 60-second spot, directed by Hornet’s Yves Geleyn and created alongside Leo Burnett London, was launched in the UK. The spot follows a group of miniature men and women on a journey through the idyllic British countryside as they improve the Happy Meal’s contents. It took Yves and his team of fifty people 12 weeks to bring the spot to life, building six sets, as well as 3D-printing and hand-painting hundreds of characters.

“It’s about making something better,” remarked director Yves Geleyn. “McDonald’s wanted to communicate how they’re always working to make a Happy Meal better, which can be told quite functionally, but we wanted to tell the story with some charm.”

“We played with scale and proportion,” added Geleyn. “I liked the idea of these little characters working to make the box, which remains true to size, better. It’s filmed almost entirely using stop motion, which I love. A lot of miniature work is now done with CGI. Stop motion possesses an authenticity, a human touch, that adds so much to a story. It allows you to create something whimsical that is grounded in something authentic.”

The spot was produced at Hornet’s stage in Brooklyn. It represents an ongoing partnership between Hornet and Geleyn, the talented mixed-media director, whose technical and narrative technique has been recognized on both sides of the Atlantic. Known for his human approach to storytelling, he uses a variety of techniques to create evocative, memorable narratives. Geleyn has worked with the NSPCC, Motorola, Kellogg’s, ESPN and John Lewis, who he created the award-winning “The Bear and The Hare” spot for.