This documentary film examines the entire process of creating a television advert, from the initial script to its presentation on screen. The film focuses on an advert for the new Rowntree's product "Today," a dark and milk chocolate assortment, and shows all those involved in the advertising process as well as the final advert. Opening titles: 'Rowntree's Present' 'From Script to Screen, the story of a television commercial' The film opens with a...

This documentary film examines the entire process of creating a television advert, from the initial script to its presentation on screen. The film focuses on an advert for the new Rowntree's product "Today," a dark and milk chocolate assortment, and shows all those involved in the advertising process as well as the final advert. Opening titles: 'Rowntree's Present' 'From Script to Screen, the story of a television commercial' The film opens with a shot of TV aerials on the rooftops of a row of terrace houses. Inside one of the houses, a family sits watching the TV whilst the commentary announces the arrival of a commercial for a new chocolate product, 'Rowntree's Today.' Various stills are used to show the process of the advertising campaign, beginning with a meeting with Mather and Crowther Advertising Agency. The new chocolates are to compete with 'Twist Wrap' assortments. The Media Planner looks at television rate cards for Anglia Television, Southern Television and TWW for 1964. He decides that television is the most effective form of advertising. The film goes onto highlight aspects of this process including the scripting process, story boarding, editing, and the making of a prototype advert for the purposes of audience testing. The Copywriter shifts through hundreds of names to choose the right one, and the Art Director examines dozens of designs before making a choice. The Copywriter works on a tagline for the ad campaign: 'Today's best value in a box of chocolates'. He then writes a script for a television commercial which is discussed by many others before it is redrafted. The advertisers put together a story board where the script is broken up into captions for the scenes. The script has to be approved by the Government's Advertising Department and the Independent Television Companies Association to ensure it is not false and does not beak any of their rules. In order to test the advert, a prototype is made for the purposes of audience testing. People are chosen at random and invited to a film show to watch the advert. After viewing, the audience members fill in a questionnaire which is stamped 16 November, 1963. Having assessed these results, the advertising team begins making the final advert. They start with the music which sets the timings. Johnny Johnson, who writes the music, is in the recording studio, and the sets are prepared at Shepperton Studios. The Director and Lighting Cameraman are both well known in their fields, and for this particular advert, the chocolates have to be stored in a refrigerator to stop them from melting in the heat of the film studio. Some of the rushes are included as well as stills of the cutting room where the film is edited together. Finally, there is a finished 30 second advert, and a shorter 15 second advert which are both shown in full. The 30 second advert is repeated. Another pair of adverts, running for the same times, are also shown. These emphasis the value for money of the chocolates, at 3/3 (3 shillings and 3 pence) for a half pound box, and also show highlight of the flavours. Finally the film ends with a shopkeeper selling 'Rowntree's Today.'