Tabletop Trends and Techniques with Bites' Mateusz Granat

Tabletop advertising stands apart for its unique production demands: visualising taste and texture in the most exciting way possible requires a blend artistic vision, technical skill, and patience. Those who master this niche, such as the team at Bites Production Hub, have the capability to conjure up all sorts of culinary magic, from chocolate explosions to rolling waves of butter. 

It’s a challenge that Mateusz Granat – production manager at Bites Studio – has embraced throughout his career. He has worked on mouthwatering, precisely- choreographed campaigns for the likes of McDonald’s, E. Wedel, and SodaStream. In this interview with LBB’s Zara Naseer, he shares what makes tabletop craft so compelling, the need for constant innovation, and the evolving role of AI in production.

LBB> First up, what led you to tabletop production?

Mateusz> Honestly, it was pure coincidence! That coincidence has a name—Dominik Orpel [general manager at technical rental company, TILT, part of the Bites Production Hub] who called me with what he described as "an offer I couldn't refuse."

I met Dominik a few years earlier in a professional context, working on advertising production, though not in tabletop but in live action. I have very fond memories of that time and working with him. Clearly, Dominik felt the same and decided to expand his team. At that time, tabletop was a new and exciting field, so I didn’t hesitate much.

I’ve stayed in the industry for so many years because each project brings fresh challenges and opportunities for growth. Whether it's creating new effects, visual solutions, or collaborating with talented creators, I feel it's an environment that continually motivates me.

This combination of factors makes it hard for me to imagine doing anything else at this point.

Above: Bites' recent work for Poland's leading chocolate brand, E. Wedel

LBB> What differentiates tabletop and standard ad production? How do the process, techniques, and challenges vary?

Mateusz> Tabletop and traditional ad production are quite different. While traditional ads focus on actors and storytelling, tabletop is all about showcasing products in a highly precise way. It’s about creating unique worlds, often with fantasy-like elements, especially with food products like chocolate.

In tabletop, practical effects require serious craftsmanship—engineering, modeling, and working with physical materials. Every detail needs to be perfect on set because fixing mistakes is time-consuming and costly. It’s more technical, with heavy planning and rehearsals to sync effects with the camera and lighting.

Traditional ad production tends to deal with larger-scale issues like budgets, locations, and schedules. But in tabletop, the pace is slower because we aim for perfection in fewer shots per day.

Above: Bites' 2024 food reel

LBB> What are the current trends in tabletop production, and how have they evolved over the years?

Mateusz> The biggest trend right now is the rise of artificial intelligence and automation. New tech has always pushed advertising forward, offering creative ways to tell stories. Now, AI is opening up entirely new possibilities for flexibility and creativity in production.

As the industry evolves quickly, it’s crucial to stay on top of these changes and use them to push boundaries in visual execution

LBB> How has the rise of Instagram/social media and user-generated content influenced the kind of visuals clients are looking for, if at all?

Mateusz> That’s an interesting question. After giving it some thought, I’d say it has had a massive impact. First and foremost, the sheer volume of content produced daily isn’t necessarily of high quality. I believe that this abundance has contributed to the development of visual sensitivity, leading to an expectation that high quality is now the standard.

Social media content often repeats certain patterns or tries to achieve similar effects—I'm thinking here specifically of the special effects created by our teams. This has had a positive impact in a way, as it encourages raising the bar and looking for more spectacular solutions.

Above: The showreel for Crunch, Bites' product content house

LBB> What’s your favourite type of project to work on? Do you have an example from your career?

Mateusz> I could refer to campaigns that tell an entire story in an abstract world, with the product playing a central role, or to projects that focus on a specific product.

The projects we work on can be divided into those where tabletop is just a few seconds of the overall piece and those where tabletop is the main focus of the entire production. Of course, the projects that fascinate me the most are those where we create abstract, fantastical worlds. They are far more complex, but it’s precisely this challenge that makes working on them so satisfying and inspiring.

As for memories, I can’t leave out coffee-related productions. I love coffee, and working on a set where the whole studio is filled with the aroma of freshly brewed coffee is incredibly enjoyable for me.

LBB> And looking to the future, how do you see tabletop production changing over the next few years? Are any exciting developments on the horizon?

Mateusz> An exciting technology is generative AI models, which is why no one can fully predict how the industry will develop.

Above: Bites' iced coffee shots for McDonald's