A television advert for a new Cadbury ice cream has been filmed in Southend at Shoebury Common beach. The production crew spent a day filming the advert earlier this month and Your Southend has spoken to the Choreographer and Movement Director, Del Mak, for an exclusive behind-the-scenes look.
The advert features a ‘Dancing Dad’ character who is buying ice creams from a purple Cadbury ice cream van in the wind and rain. Once he takes a bite from his ice cream, he is suddenly overcome with spontaneous joy and breaks free from formality; dancing along the beachfront promenade in a moment of unplanned joy.
Del worked with the ‘dancing Dad’ actor to come up with the movement & journey he takes through the 30 second advert. Speaking about the choreography, Del said: “The movement and direction was designed to emphasise the simple joy that the ice cream brings to those that eat it – whatever the weather.”
Shoebury Common beach was chosen as the location for the advert because it has a stretch of beach huts that the producers wanted to feature and it wasn’t too far from London. Del said: “It seems to be a great location to take a tranquil walk and has a good view of the coastline. It was amazing to watch the kite surfers out on the water too.”
Del revealed that the crew found filming on Southend seafront challenging due to the typical British weather elements of unpredictable sunlight and wind, which affected the steadycam operator. A special effects co-ordinator was at the shoot to create the rain for the advert, pumping water from a tanker and spraying it above the scene.
Del told us: “Ironically, despite having to create the rain in the commercial, we had rehearsals on the day before the shoot where a real downpour hit the beach!”
As well as commercials, Del has worked on a variety of other projects including live TV, films, music videos and stage shows. He said: “Each project presents it’s own unique challenge which keeps the creative juices flowing. It was nice to work on the Cadbury ad as it had a witty British-ness to it with a tongue-in-cheek nod to finding something positive, fun & charming in an otherwise bad situation.”
He added: “The production crew and I had a very pleasant experience in Southend, being welcomed very warmly by Uncle Tom’s Cabin cafe and the locals being very friendly.”
You can read more about Del’s work on his website: www.delmak.com
Watch the finished advert below.