Burberry recently premiered ‘The Tale of Thomas Burberry’, a new campaign to kick off the festive season for the brand while coinciding with the launch of dedicated in-store and online experiences, and iconic Burberry gifts for men, women and the home.
Written by Matt Charman and directed by Asif Kapadia, ‘The Tale of Thomas Burberry’ is a three-minute cinematic trailer, showcasing the reimagination of key events that have shaped the company’s history and values. Catch the short film below.
The film stars:
- Domhnall Gleeson as Burberry founder, Thomas Burberry
- Sienna Miller as Thomas’s fictional first love
- Dominic West as Sir Ernest Shackleton, the pioneering polar explorer who wore Burberry gabardine for three Antarctic expeditions
- Lily James as pilot, Betty Dawson, a fictionalized character inspired by the real-life achievements of Betty Kirby-Green, who broke the world record in 1937 for a return flight from England to Cape Town in an aeroplane named ‘The Burberry’.
The flawless hair and make-up of the campaign was done by Jenny Shircore (Academy Award-winning make-up artist of ‘Elizabeth’, and BAFTA Award winner of ‘Elizabeth’, ‘The Young Victoria’) using Burberry make-up. We’re obsessed with the looks!
Some of the real life moments re-enacted in the film include Thomas’s invention of the weatherproof fabric gabardine, dressing the military, and outfitting polar explorers and pilots. Shot primarily at Shirburn Castle in Oxfordshire, the location served as the backdrop for the faithfully recreated First World War trenches, and Thomas’s workshop inspired by materials in the Burberry Archive.
“This Christmas, as we celebrate our 160th anniversary we wanted to tell the story of Thomas Burberry – pioneer, inventor, innovator, and the man behind the iconic trench coat – in our own words. The film we have made is a brief glimpse inspired by his full and extraordinary life, which threaded its way through the history of the twentieth century in all its tumultuous highs and lows. To do justice to this story, we turned to a team of truly great twenty-first century British talent: Asif Kapadia, a director whose work I admire enormously, and a cast of our brightest and our best actors: Domhnall Gleeson, Sienna Miller, Dominic West and Lily James. We feel very proud to be sharing The Tale of Thomas Burberry this Christmas – his spirit and his vision are still at the heart of everything we do at Burberry today,” Christopher Bailey, Burberry Chief Creative and Chief Executive Officer.
For more information, visit my.burberry.com or www.burberry.com.
Read also: UNIQLO Unveils Three New Fall/Winter Collections in the MAGIC for All Disney Project
– Cover Image: © Courtesy of Burberry
