Earlier this week, Walpole partnered with BBC StoryWorks for the launch of Love Letters from Britain: a unique film series exploring why the UK's most innovative luxury brands are a powerful and alluring calling card for the country. To find out more, we spoke with the StoryWorks' team to discover why they were drawn to the luxury sector; what's next for the project (plus how you can get involved); and why "each film within this series delves deep into the fantastic things these brands do behind the scenes, beyond simply creating beautiful items."
Love Letters from Britain is a new series of short documentary-style films uncovering the untold stories of UK’s most innovative luxury brands, produced for Walpole by BBC StoryWorks Commercial Productions and including stories supported by the GREAT Britain & Northern Ireland Campaign.
Please click here to see All the films.
Who are BBC StoryWorks?
Vlada Tusco, Partner Manager: BBC StoryWorks is the commercial content studio of BBC Global News, which operates BBC.com with 155 million unique visitors to every month.
We collaborate with leading brands and organisations to create engaging and beautifully crafted stories with a focus on particular sectors, topics or industries. We publish and distribute these to a global audience of curious minds, helping forge a deeper discussion about the fundamental issues that are shaping our world.
What is it about British luxury that makes this such an interesting series?
Vlada Tusco: Initially, we were drawn to the sector’s rich history and illustrious heritage, and the opportunity to explore stories of enduring traditional practices and superior craft. As we embarked on the project, we learned that whilst British luxury brands do draw significantly from their roots, they are also innovative and forward thinking, with the duality of heritage and modernity sitting firmly at the core of the sector. This provided an abundance of creative opportunity, allowing us to explore diverse facets of this dynamic sector and telling stories that are nuanced, complex and surprising. The result is a diverse showcase of British brands’ creative leadership, innovative spirit, commitment to creating meaningful impact and pursuit of a more responsible relationship with people and the planet.
Latisha Ma: British luxury isn’t just about beautiful things, it’s about a history, a heritage, a sense of quality and craft, not to mention its innovative spirit. The opportunity to delve into those stories is the essence of this series, it’s about showing the human beings behind the brands. British luxury always feels like it has a rich story or foundation behind it, and it’s been our job to identify those elements and give them the visibility that they deserve.
How has BBC StoryWorks worked with Walpole and its member brands?
Vlada Tusco: Our vision for the project was to uncover the untold stories of British luxury that best illustrate its core principles, values and processes. To achieve this, we worked closely and collaboratively with each brand, combining their deep knowledge of the craft with our own storytelling expertise to co-create films that are thought-provoking and engaging for a diverse global audience. The team at Walpole shared invaluable insights about the sector in the early stages of development, helping us formulate a sound thematic structure for the series and ensuring we are focusing on the stories of most resonance, reach and relevance.
What was different about the storytelling, vision and approach for this series?
Latish Ma: Something I have always felt passionate about is the idea that consumers are viewers, they are one and the same. In creating branded content, we are attempting to reach the very same individuals that are accustomed to high-calibre storytelling that we see practised on Netflix, for example, in ground-breaking series, documentaries, or films. Those core rules for what makes content impactful should absolutely apply to branded content too: human-led narratives, authentic characters you can connect with or are instantly curious about, and compelling stories that help you make sense of the world in some small way. These are the things that humanise a brand and bring it to life for audiences.
Working closely with brands to identify the best people, projects and places that will help bring their story to life is where it all begins; capturing each brand’s essence and making sure that each film had its own personality was incredibly important.
Each film within this series delves deep into the fantastic things these brands do behind the scenes, beyond simply creating beautiful items. Whether it’s their efforts to forge a more responsible relationship with the planet, create positive social impact initiatives, nurture their incredible craftspeople or innovate to adapt in our ever-changing world, the series was an opportunity to shine a light on these untold stories. The result is a testament to these organisations’ collaborative spirit and ability to remain open-minded, allowing us to steer the creative process and contribute our storytelling expertise; enabling us to produce films that feel authentic, surprising and compelling.
Were you surprised about some of the stories behind the brands?
Absolutely. To speak of one of the films as an example, I had no idea about the ‘dunhill community’. In formulating the approach for the film, the team were incredibly open to our steer that we build the film around the collaboration between Mark Weston and Moses Boyd allowing us to create an artistic piece that captures dunhill’s brand-purpose in an authentic and intelligent way. In this film we have characters who are showing us who the brand is and what they do, who are demonstrating things in real-time, they are telling us a fascinating story, that is why it works so well.
How is the series being distributed?
Vlada Tusco: The first collection of nine films is now live on a dedicated BBC StoryWorks digital hub, available to international audiences outside of the UK. In addition, there is a social media campaign from BBC StoryWorks, launching each individual film across multiple social platforms and promoting them to targeted audiences, ensuring each story has resonance and impact where it matters. A further 10 films, presently in pre-production, will be published in October.
Tell us more about the second series that launches in October and how other brands can get involved.
Latisha Ma: We are continuing to work on the next set of films in this fantastic collaboration series presented by Walpole and featuring GREAT, which will include a strong focus on sustainability.
Vlada Tusco: Beyond October, our vision for the project is that it continues to expand, with more films coming on board, building on the successful first season. We’ve learned that the British luxury sector is a rich tapestry of diverse and surprising stories, so we are looking forward to exploring these further. There are plenty of topics that we are yet to tap into, so we’re keen to hear from brands who’d like their captivating stories brought to life on screen as part of this evolving series.
*If you’d like to submit a story for consideration, do get in touch: [email protected]
