**

When Isobel ECDs Ben Stump and Simon Findlater reached out to us with a project they were super excited about, we knew right away it was going to be something pretty special. The chance to work directly with such experienced creatives was an opportunity we couldn't wait to dive into. It’s rare to get such an open brief, and even rarer to collaborate with a team who truly understands the value of great music in commercial storytelling, but this project was precisely that.

The concept behind the job was pretty simple: To create multiple sonic iterations of the phrase - “How Could You”? - to illustrate the impunity with which consumers can devour delicious Beyond Meat burgers. The films were already pretty ridiculous - a deft combination of great performances and killer CGI work from Framestore. As we began diving deeper into the music, the possibilities grew wider and more exciting. From the off, we knew we needed something that could convey both comedy and surrealism, while keeping a cool edge that felt fresh and unexpected.

**

We kicked things off with a coffee meeting, throwing around ideas and discussing the creative direction. Ben and Simon already had a solid vision for the spot, which made the whole process much smoother. They knew, broadly speaking, the sonic world they wanted to operate in and were looking for a track that could elevate the concept - something that would balance the humour with a touch of cool.

The guys came in with a few strong reference tracks that laid the groundwork for our music direction. The first reference was How Could You Babe by Tobias Jesso Jr. - a super cool track that captured the essence of the phrase they wanted to explore. Along with that, they suggested a few other tracks, including Your Sweet Love by Lee Hazelwood and Far From Any Road by The Handsome Family. These references set the tone and gave us a solid foundation to work from.

The dominant idea was to lean into soul music, which we all thought would maximise the comedic potential of the spot, but the team also wanted to explore ways of injecting a bit more unfamiliarity into the spot - amplifying the strangeness of the scene with some slightly more off-kilter demos...

We put forward tracks like Maria También by Khruangbin & Fire By The River by Harumi, both of which presented a more singular world-music vibe. The boys loved these references and felt they would offer the films something a bit different to the films... Always worth a try...

Once we’d nailed down the direction and whittled the playlist down to about 10 core references, we got to work on creating the demos. Below are some of the demos we submitted to the team at Isobel:

Each demo explored the core theme in a different way, providing a variety of textures and moods for the team to choose from. Our hope was that these demos would not only fit the brief but also give Ben, Simon, and the team room to experiment and find the best match for the spot.

Once we had settled on a direction and we began refining the final track; experimenting with alternative vocals and different lengths, hit points etc. it became very clear that this was precisely what music creation in commercials could and should be - pure fun. The end result was a track that was silly and playful whilst also helping to bolster the brands message. The film & track combined to form a perfect blend of humor, surrealism, and coolness, elevating the concept and giving us another sweet tune to promote !

We couldn’t be happier with the final result, and we’re so grateful to Ben, Simon, and the rest of the team at Isobel for trusting us with such an exciting project.

If there’s a takeaway from this case study, it’s that when you have a brief that challenges you to experiment, explore, and push boundaries—amazing things happen. This project was a perfect example of what can be achieved when you collaborate closely with creatives who truly get the process.

Thanks for taking the time to check out our work. We hope you enjoy the film as much as we enjoyed making it.

Cheers,
Luca & The Lost Boy collective