The Christmas Apple Ad That Carried An Unexpected Gut Punch

No animation. No animals. No forced smiles. Just a beautifully simple, smart, emotional gut-punch. Maybe it resonates because I was once a moody teenager myself, but as a grown-up creative I admire the honesty of the approach: a story we instantly recognise, where the product isn’t shouting for attention - it’s simply present, useful, human.

I’ve always loved that the film was, fittingly, misunderstood when it came out - criticised by some for being “sad”. Sad? Please. It was a Christmas miracle. If anything, it quietly reminded us that connection doesn’t always look the way we expect it to.

If 2026 is shaped by teenagers looking down at their phones while actually creating something meaningful for the people they love, I’d say we’re doing just fine.