Apple’s latest holiday ad brings forest animals to life in an enchanting musical celebration—but there’s more beneath the surface than just cute puppets. Apple’s new festive campaign aims to spark joy and a sense of connection through a charming ensemble of woodland creatures singing about friendship, all while spotlighting the cutting-edge features of the iPhone 17.
Released on Thursday, the heartwarming film titled “A Critter Carol” runs 2 minutes and 24 seconds and showcases nine intricately handmade animal puppets. What’s truly impressive is that the entire commercial was filmed on the brand-new iPhone 17 Pro. This creative approach was led by acclaimed Australian director Mark Molloy, known for his previous Apple commercials and his feature directorial debut with Netflix’s "Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F." (You can watch the full ad on YouTube here.)
The narrative unfolds when a hiker accidentally drops his iPhone 17 Pro in a snowy forest. A quirky troop of animals—a raccoon, bear, rat, owl, deer, squirrel, rabbit, mole, and deer—discovers the device and delightfully films themselves singing “Friends,” a joyful tune originally by New Zealand’s iconic music-comedy duo Flight of the Conchords, who gained fame with their own HBO series.
When the hiker and his companion return, guided by the Find My app on his Apple Watch, the animals scatter nervously. The phone lies nestled in a heart-shaped pattern of twigs, and as the hiker watches the whimsical video recorded by the critters, he looks around in amazed wonder. The mole’s hopeful whisper, “Hope they like it!” is quickly hushed by the raccoon, beautifully underscoring the tagline: “Friendship Is a Gift.”
Apple plans to broadcast “A Critter Carol” globally across television, social media, and digital outlets, with a shorter version debuting on U.S. TV during NBC’s Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade coverage.
Additionally, Apple released an exclusive behind-the-scenes video revealing the craftsmanship behind the puppets and the skilled puppeteers who brought them to life. Director Molloy explains his desire to embrace the tactile artistry of puppetry, emphasizing a return to handmade creativity in a world increasingly dominated by digital effects.
This ad is a deliberate pivot towards analog warmth, emphasizing human creativity’s enduring power. The hand-printed woodblock typography used throughout the campaign reinforces this commitment to craftsmanship. This approach starkly contrasts with last year’s controversial iPad ad "Crush!", which depicted creative objects being destroyed by a hydraulic press—an image some interpreted as a grim metaphor for technology’s potential to erase human artistry.
The “Critter Carol” spot also highlights the iPhone 17 Pro’s impressive camera features, including an 8x zoom, Center Stage selfies that smoothly shift between portrait and landscape modes, and Dual Capture, which records video simultaneously from front and rear cameras. Molloy praises the device’s capabilities, saying it enabled a deeply immersive storytelling experience.
Filmed on a Prague soundstage, this production was managed by TBWA\Media Arts Lab, Apple’s exclusive ad agency, alongside production companies Smuggler and Unit+Sofa based in Prague. Joost van Gelder was the director of photography, and Andy Kelly handled production design.
But here’s where it gets controversial: Is Apple’s embrace of handcrafted puppetry a genuine nod to creativity, or a marketing move to distance itself from fears about AI’s impact on art? Share your thoughts—does this campaign celebrate authentic artistry, or is it glossing over deeper tensions between technology and human creativity?
Watch "A Critter Carol" to see this charming blend of technology and tradition come to life.
