Produce a warm, stylish, and engaging holiday social video for Ann Taylor to help buyers get ready for holiday season shopping.
*Owing to product availability considerations, you must be able to receive product at an address in the U.S. or Canada*
The holiday season is quickly approaching, and with it a joyous few months of celebrations. Having an array of stylish and elegant wardrobe options for the upcoming gatherings is must, and few know this better than Ann Taylor. A women's apparel retailer, Ann Taylor is widely celebrated for its classic and sophisticated wardrobe pieces, outfitting women to make sure they're ready-for-work or ready-for-anything in a timeless, tailored style. Now, they want to turn their attention to creating a piece of elegant and effective holiday content.
The goal of this project is to create a a modern, elevated holiday social video that helps promote their holiday campaign, "Ann Unforgettable Season." Going purely live action here, this should feel like a modern take on holiday, where gifting, style, and celebration all come together in a fashionable, chic way. It should capture both the joy of gifting and the vibes of the season, while also not going too far into sentimentality or playing anywhere in the "hallmark" range, ultimately highlighting that Ann Taylor pieces are perfect elevated presents for the holidays. Ann Taylor has two different creative angles they're considering for this video (both can be reviewed in the Background), so you will want to center your concept around one of these ideas for your pitch.
For casting, you'll want to be looking for women in their key demographic of 35-49 who can look elegant, relatable, and at home in Ann Taylor attire. For this project, you should be prepared to present a few casting options upon greenlight, and have sizes ready so that product can be shipped in a timely fashion. The brand will almost certainly provide the specific product(s) they want to feature, but you are welcome to propose certain products as well if either you have personal experience using Ann Taylor.
For this project, once a filmmaker is selected, they will be put directly in contact with the sponsor. All communication and feedback between both parties will run through the Tongal platform.
Check out more information in the Background, and for any questions or other project updates, check out the Project Forum.
DELIVERABLES: There are 2 total video assets.
EXPECTED TIMELINE: HERE
EXPOSURE: We expect content will be used on the platforms below, but if casting talent, be sure they review our required Talent Release before they're cast, as it is NOT limited to these platforms. You should also review our Music providers in the Project Requirements, as well as the platform best practices.
TARGET AUDIENCE: Women ages 35-49.
TONE/FEEL: Professional, modern, feminine. Elevated holiday storytelling (but not overly sentimental).
EXECUTIONAL MANDATORIES:
By participating in this project, creators acknowledge that the Sponsor is under no obligation to greenlight a submission. Though most projects do move forward, we'll notify you in the event the Sponsor decides not to fund any submissions via the Project Forum. Regardless of the result, all submissions will be reviewed and evaluated by the Sponsor and project team.
ANN TAYLOR CREATIVE ANGLES
Option #1: Work to Party - From the polished office look to the festive after-hours glow-up, Ann is the thread that carries her seamlessly through every holiday moment.
Option #2: A "Wishlift" Gift Story: A gifting-inspired narrative, where giving (to herself and others) feels both stylish and thoughtful. Each gift “lifts” the season, literally and emotionally.
In order to be considered, include the below materials in your submission. For examples of effective pitches, check out this gallery. All Pitches remain private, even after a Pitch is selected, and Tongal strives to have Pitch selections made by the end of the Evaluation period, but additional time may be required by the Sponsor, depending on any number of factors.
The most compelling pitch will be greenlit by the Sponsor, and the responsible creator will then receive an email from Tongal producers detailing next steps. All submitters will also receive an automated email notification that a selection has been announced. To ensure you’re receiving project updates, review your email settings to check that you haven’t unsubscribed.
Creators who’ve been selected will receive funding upon completing the Winner Affidavit and the IP Assignment. Payment of the pitch funds is subject to a payment schedule determined by Tongal, typically included with the project timeline.
PRE-PRODUCTION BIBLE & APPROVALS: Prior to the commencement of actual production, creators MUST prepare a singular pre-production "bible" document with the elements contained below, and that document MUST receive final approval from the Sponsor. We recommend that you use the bible template we provide HERE, or something very similar. The bible can be presented in stages as different elements are ready for review (i.e. it's not expected that storyboards, if required, are ready with your first draft). Apart from the below, you're also welcome to include other key items that you think would be helpful to communicate your plan (e.g. moodboards, lighting, music, shot list, etc.).
Note that there may be multiple rounds of feedback until elements are approved, and if you begin production before you have received final approval, you may need to reshoot or reanimate at your own expense.
For convenience, we've provided some helpful templates that you can consider using for pre-production materials, and they can all be accessed here.
BUILDING YOUR TEAM: Looking for help? Post crew and production opportunities connected to Tongal projects on Backlot. Backlot includes search tools to help you find collaborators and crew by role, skill set, location, and more, for productions of any size and type. Tongal also supports inclusivity in all productions, and strongly encourages you to hire diverse talent for your team. To find additional options for staff & crew in your area, check out these resources and partners.
REVISION REQUIREMENTS & RESOURCES: Once Content has been submitted and the initial Production Phase completed, greenlit creators will enter into Revisions. Creators will perform reasonable edits on their videos according to the Sponsor's feedback. Check out our Filmmaker Resource Portal to access helpful post-production resources like Text-Safe Guides for different platforms, Project File Organization Tutorial, Export Presets, and Captioning services.
MUSIC: If you use music from a library for your content, you MUST use one of Tongal's music providers: Jingle Punks, Universal Production Music, and PrimalHouse Music. Music from these providers is available to registered Tongal members at no charge solely for their incorporation into submissions to this project, and will not require a Music Release Form. To learn more, click on any of the providers' names above.
If you choose to use original music, you must fill out and submit our Music Release Form. Please ensure your composer reviews and signs this form BEFORE beginning their work.
STOCK FOOTAGE: Tongal has partnered with the stock footage library STORYBLOCKS, which can be used to source video clips, photography, and After Effects templates for your video submission to this project. Video or photo content from Storyblocks is available at no charge, solely for incorporation into submissions on this project, and will not require a separate Release Form. If identifiable people or intellectual property appears in a video clip or photo, you may only utilize assets that are clearly marked “Model released: Yes” or “Property release: Yes” on the clip description pages. You may not use any audio.
If you intend to use Storyblocks, inform your Tongal producer, and an account will be created for you to access the library. Once assets are approved for delivery, you must provide a complete list of all Storyblocks content that you used via our template HERE.
ASSET DELIVERY REQUIREMENTS & RESOURCES: You must also provide all project files, editing sequences and a 1080p .mov master file, using a ProRes, Animation, or Uncompressed Codec in order to submit final payment. You are responsible for any costs associated with the hard drive and shipping. Tongal also reserves the right to request all raw files associated with the project.
To ensure a smoother delivery, please review the Export Presets, Specifications, and Project File Organization Tutorial in our Filmmaker Resource Portal.