Behind the Scenes of Warburtons’ High-Stakes Crumpet Heist with Olivia Colman

When it comes to advertising, Warburtons has built a legacy of blending British wit, big-name talent and bold storytelling — and its latest campaign is no exception.

Starring national treasure Olivia Colman and directed by Merman’s Declan Lowney, the ad brings a hyper-dramatic inspection of crumpets to life with cinematic flair, tongue-in-cheek humour, and a dash of absurdity that only Warburtons could pull off.

We caught up with some of the creative team to find out what it was like working with the actor and building out Warburton’s visual world.

LBB> What was it like working with Olivia Colman? And why was she the right talent for this campaign?

Declan> Olivia is a dote! It was a joy to work with her. She's at the top of her game, knows exactly what she's doing, and is so ‘on it’!
It was so cool to have a British star back in the campaign. Peter Kay was the last one, and he's a tough actor to follow for sure.
But when it came to finding a top-notch British actor, Olivia was the perfect fit for this concept.

LBB> This ad plays heavily with parody, precision and classic British absurdity — how did you work with the production and creative teams to hit the right visual and comedic tone?

Declan> I have a long working relationship with Billy, Andy, and Johnny, who wrote the script, and with Warburtons. We’ve done so many of these now, that we have an excellent creative shorthand and are usually all in agreement about where the gags are and how best to treat them. And the great thing is, the gags don't finish when we finish shooting. There are quite a few extra jokes in there as well, things the guys thought of that we added in post-production.

LBB>There’s a cinematic quality to this ad — how important was it to bring a filmic lens to this world, and what did that add to the final tone?

Declan> Olivia landed firmly in the British consciousness with her Emmy and Bafta-winning performances in Broadchurch and The Night Manager. So for ‘Inspection’, we thought it would be fun to lean a little into the tropes associated with those thrillers and dramas. Principally that means operating the cameras in a handheld style and using zoom lenses. This sort of shooting style adds edgy energy to what’s happening in front of the lens, and makes it all feel more real, like this actually happened and we were there to observe it, rather than something we staged. We wanted it to seem like there was a lot at stake here for Warburtons… I think we pulled it off!

LBB> In terms of visual effects, how did you approach the creation and compositing of environments to create a cohesive look, balancing the live-action footage with a comedic tone?

Jason> Overall the whole look was very playful, factory design was broken down into discrete components such as conveyors, structure, lighting and storage which allowed the development of procedural tools tailored to each element, this approach meant we could instantly switch between various conveyor items such as bread, crumpets, packaging, or other products. I worked very closely with Declan and the creatives on the dream sequence which was a joy to be part of and to watch in the finished film.

LBB> How did you work on the grade to create such a vibrant look?

Marty> On this occasion, working closely with Freefolk's CG team early on allowed me to incorporate a preliminary version of the Warburtons factory for the initial grading session. This was incredibly beneficial as it allowed everyone to get a much more intuitive feel for the tones, space, and lighting and how the grade was sitting compared to grading with a green screen backdrop.

Regarding the film's aesthetic, we opted for a fresh and vibrant palette. We paid close attention to the brand colours and consistently focused on faces and eyes, which really helped the comedic performances shine. The dream sequence provided an opportunity to experiment with glow and subtly soften the darker tones, giving it a stylish and ethereal feel. We also dedicated significant effort to ensuring the crumpets maintained their true colour throughout the various baking stages and looked deliciously appealing.