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How we made a TV Ad

An in-depth look into our Essex County Council Fostering services Advert 'Ready or Not'.

Essex Fostering service transforms children’s lives by placing them in safe homes with foster carers around the county. In 2020, 500 children are predicted to come into care; Essex County Council needed to plough their efforts into promoting their service to attract more foster carers.


After previously producing successful film and photography campaigns for the Council, The Fostering Service approached us to pitch ideas for a fostering awareness film. The brief was to inspire and inform people in the area to think about becoming foster carers and drive enquiries from people with the services value-based altruistic demographics.

THE PITCH

We approach the majority of our pitches in the same way, firstly we do our research; in this case, that was finding out what drives people to foster, what could an awareness film draw on to encourage the right people to respond? What’s been done already? Was it any good and how could it be improved? We then spent some time putting together a treatment with a choice of narratives for the client to choose from.


With this project we focused on a storytelling element for the ad, we wanted to bring to life the emotions and rewards of becoming a foster carer, and sensitively  show the journey of a child in foster care.

Pitching for such a meaningful project was really exciting for the Ranch team, we genuinely believed we could really help the service make a difference to children.


Pre Production

We were delighted when the client confirmed the commission, and with tight time scales pre-production began straight away.


For a project like this pre-production is a sizeable task, we have a great team at Ranch who took care of the behind-the-scenes work which included client contact, casting (we cast for 2 adults and 3 children), location scouting (the film needed to take place at different locations throughout one day), licenses and scriptwriting.


The creative team started putting a narrative together based around a key reveal, driven by a montage of flashbacks; We commissioned an artist to put a storyboard together to bring each scene to life, this allowed us to share our vision of the film with the client and it gave us the opportunity to be prepared to the finest detail in advance of the shoot day. From lighting, timing, scripts and locations we could plan the day out almost to the minute (and every minute counts on shoot day) based on our thorough pre-production.

SHOOT DAY

Well, they say never work with children or animals… we decided to do both! The child actors were a joy to work with, super professional and our foster family dog played along when he felt like it.

It was fantastic to have most of the Ranch crew on set for filming, our two Creative Directors, camera operator, shoot coordinator, production assistant and MUA all working to a tight schedule to get the film shot in one day.


We had a total of 5 actors (children and adults) to co-ordinate and the clients on set, so it was a full-on and exciting day.  The pre-production ensured everyone knew exactly what they were doing on the day and allowed our Directors to get everything they needed looking perfect.


A woman is standing next to a boy who is writing on a piece of paper.

POST-PRODUCTION

At Ranch, we manage all post-production in house. From editing and colour grading to sound engineering. We have a hugely talented team working on post to make sure everything is of the highest quality. We have our own studio which again allows us to keep quality consistently high and means we can offer the client excellent production value by keeping post in house. 


A computer screen shows a woman 's face in a video editing program.

CLIENT FEEDBACK

Crunch time! No matter how many projects you produce (if you’re passionate about what you do) it’s always with nervous excitement that you hand over the finished product…. confidently hopeful that the client will love it as much as we do.


Essex Fostering were really delighted with the film, their feedback blew us away. Our pre-production approach had allowed us to invite the client into the creative process and be kept informed every step of the way so there were no surprises when it came to the final product.


Most importantly, the film had an extremely positive impact on the services marketing campaign, engaging viewers and helping towards a steep rise in enquiries from prospective carers.

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A young woman is wearing a blue sweater and a necklace.
By Ranch Creative April 3, 2025
With a decade of experience in marketing fostering services and a commitment to social value enterprises, we set out to create something truly unique, a campaign shaped by the voices of children in care. Here’s how we turned a vision to produce an authentic and truly original campaign into reality. Co-Producing with Young People and Essex County Council At the heart of this project was our commitment to ensuring that children in care had a direct role in shaping the message. Through close collaboration with Essex County Council’s Fostering Services, we worked under safeguarding guidelines to engage young people in a meaningful and safe way. Their insights and lived experiences were invaluable in creating an authentic campaign that truly reflects their journey. The Vision: A Film Inspired by ‘Real Experiences’ Working with the Essex Fostering team, we developed a compelling short film that aims to resonate with potential foster carers and the wider community. The film captures the emotional transition of a child entering foster care, from initial anxiety to a newfound sense of belonging. We’re so proud of the finished product, and even more so of the children involved in the process. The Creative Process To ensure authenticity, we followed a structured approach: Workshops with Children in Care : Gathering real life experiences and emotions to inform the narrative. Script Development : Transforming their insights into a powerful and relatable story. Storyboarding and Direction : Designing visuals that capture the highs and lows of a foster care journey. Production : Bringing the vision to life with a high-quality, emotionally compelling film. Final Delivery – The campaign is now live, ready to be shared across various platforms. A Journey Told Through 'Sarah' The film follows the journey of 'Sarah,' a young girl entering foster care. Her emotions evolve throughout the story: Fear and Uncertainty : Feeling like an outsider in a new home. Hesitation and Adjustment : Small gestures, like having her name on a bedroom door, helping her settle. Belonging and Acceptance : Realising she is truly part of a family. A New Chapter : Reflecting on the significance of her foster family's support. Why This Matters This campaign isn’t just about storytelling; it’s about representation. By co-producing this film with young people who have experienced care, we’ve created something that is not only impactful but also deeply personal. Their voices shaped the narrative, making it an honest and heartfelt portrayal of fostering. What’s Next? With the campaign now live, we encourage everyone to share this film and help spread awareness about the importance of fostering. Essex County Council’s Fostering Services continues to seek compassionate individuals who can make a difference in a child’s life. We are incredibly proud of this collaboration and grateful to the young people who helped bring this project to life. Their courage and openness have made this campaign truly special.
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