Just in Time for the Holidays, Microsoft Bridges the Reindeer Language Gap in Cute New Ad

Aside from the obvious, more practical benefits of having access to such technology, the idea of eliminating those hurdles takes on a certain magic during Christmas. Removing those linguistic blocks bring us one step closer to understanding each other, and there’s really no better time to celebrate that newfound common ground than the holidays.

And for children, who so often just want a better understanding of the world around them, a chance to be heard and the freedom to seek that knowledge (one adorably invasive question at a time) are invaluable gifts.

Microsoft’s holiday campaign, created by McCann New York, introduces us to a curious 6-year-old named Lucy who watches as her mom communicates with great ease, despite the notable language barrier between herself and her Japanese-speaking clients.

When she later sees a pair of visiting reindeer wander onto the snowy lawn, Lucy quickly springs into action, grabbing the tablet just before heading outside to meet her newest hooved friends. Wonderstruck, she tests Microsoft Translator on the majestic creatures. Thankfully, one of the languages programmed into this particular version is North Pole Reindeer: Once she receives the affirmative, Lucy finds there is nothing in the way of her carrying out a friendly—and rapid—line of questioning. To be fair, we’d also like to know exactly what Santa does during the summer.

As younger children become more adept to technology by the year, centering the software’s cross-generational appeal before the swell of gift-buying (and Black Friday madness) is ideal. The campaign will launch during the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and run through December across TV, cinema, digital and social channels.

Credits:
Microsoft
Kathleen Hall – Corporate Vice President of Brand, Advertising and Research
Deana Singleton – GM, Global Advertising
Stacey Terrien – Director, Global Advertising
Jenny Leahy – Director, Social and Media Partnerships
Ron Schott – Senior Manager, Global Advertising
Hannah Westing – Manager, Global Advertising
Danielle Radcliffe – Manager Social Media
Dawn Novak – Sr. Product Marketing Manager, Global Advertising
m:united//McCann New York:
Creative
Sean Bryan – Co-Chief Creative Officer
Tom Murphy – Co-Chief Creative Officer
Shayne Millington – EVP, Executive Creative Director
Michael Aimette – Executive Creative Director
Rick Ardito – Creative Director
Emmie Nostitz – Creative Director
Edu Lunardi – Senior Art Director
Hunter Pinnell – Copywriter
Nick Larson – Senior Copywriter
David Cliff – Director Creative Technology
Alicia Foor – Creative Technologist
Hiya Vazirani – Creative Technologist
Business Leadership
Kevin Nelson – Global Business Lead
Tina Galley – EVP, Executive Account Director
Rosemary Calderone – SVP, Executive Account Director
Jeremy Miller, EVP, Global Chief Communications Officer, McCann Worldgroup
Ellie Choi – Account Director
Emily Swastek – Account Supervisor
Production
Carolyn Johnson – SVP, Head of Integrated Production
Mel Senecal – VP, Senior Producer
Nina Roussarie – Senior Producer
Project Management
Stella Warkman – SVP, Director of Project Management
Lauren Kosche – Senior Project Manager
Business Affairs
Eric David Johnson – SVP, Executive Music Producer
Jamie Jou – Music Business Manager
Dan Gross – Music Producer
David Halberstadt – Business Manager
Strategy
Joanna Schwab – EVP, Global Strategy Director
Jordan Berger – Social Strategy Director
Production: Hungry Man
Hank Perlman– Director
Kevin Byrne – Managing Partner/Executive Producer
Martha E. Davis – Producer
Editorial: Rock Paper Scissors, NY
Damion Clayton – Editor
Sebastian Zotoff – Assistant Editor
Eve Kornblum – Managing Director
Jenny Greenfield – Producer
Post/VFX: MPC
Matthew Loranger – Executive Producer
Chris Connolly – VFX Producer
VFX Supervisor/Flame Lead: Tim Crean
2D Team: Julien Aucouturier, Lawrence Merrill
VFX Team: Jaswan Prasath, Sathish Chellappan, Shyam Babu, Yasasvini Vagampalli, Muruga T, Vishal Dark, Geetesh Tari
Color House: MPC
Ricky Gausis – Senior Colorist
James Tillett – Senior Colorist
Sasha Pace – Producer
Music: JSM Music
Joel Simon – CCO/COE/Co-Composer
Jeff Fiorello – Executive Producer
Jason Krebs – Co-Composer