A Mystery Revealed

So, there have been several enigmatic blog posts during the year about a project that has kept me occupied since January and which only recently came to fruition.

 

Well now, I can tell you all.

 

Last week in Birmingham at the NEC, I was privileged to lead a team who staged the event "Together 2021” for McDonald's Uk and Ireland. An integral part of the event was the showing of a feature film “As Good As All Of Us” which we shot during the summer. My first foray behind the camera and a project which has brought me a great deal of joy throughout the year.

 

To see a film one has created in glowing colour on a screen the size of an Imax in front of an audience of nearly three thousand people is a wondrous thing. A little frightening and yet awe-inspiring. Mercifully, as director my face wasn’t raised to such great heights, but I had the pleasure of sitting with some actors in the piece who had never seen their features in such gigantic proportions.

 

And as well as the story of our hero Tom, a boy starting university and trying to find his place in the world, the film contained real life testimony. Stories from over 60 people who work for McDonald's at many levels throughout the business. As it should be, they were the real stars. Revealing interviews with great emotional truth, and a sense of pride and joy in what they do.

 

Having used an unknown young actor as our hero, what a thrill it was to walk around the gala dinner that evening with him. He posed for selfies and was greeted enthusiastically by people who had seen his work that morning. They took him to their hearts.

 

The wonderful thing about this project was that everyone who has been part of it has been touched by it. Many of the conference crew had also worked as film crew in the summer, and they too were full of pride to see their film up on the big screen.

 

And just like the cast who saw the film in London at a screening, to watch the whole thing was an eye-opener for so many. To find the heart and the people behind a company so many think is just a global corporation. A company that has stepped to the fore during the last eighteen months in the communities it serves. A company that has looked after both its people and its customers.

 

A company who were brave enough to send me off to make a feature film and let me tell a story. 

 

So, a huge thank you to them, to the audience for their fabulous reaction and to all the wonderful cast and crew it has been a genuine privilege to work with on this project.

 

The joy of our lives as freelancers is that we never know what is round the corner. While sporadically, it may be despair and darkness, just one job like this can bring so much sunshine.

 

A moment when we can genuinely say I’m lovin’ it”.