A Christmas advert made for less than what most gifts would cost is bucking the trend in the UK, and a warning, this is a tearjerker.
The short film, Love is a gift, is the heartbreaking story of a man listening to cassettes on Christmas Day, recorded by his late mum.
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It cost Phil Beastall from Gloucester less than NZ$100 to make the advert - a stark contrast to the millions spent by big brands on their Christmas commercials, ITV News reports.
"I just wanted to make something that would resonate with people, and I just wanted that for people to watch it and at the end of it they would just take a moment and perhaps turn to their partners or their mum or their dad or their kids, and just say, 'You know what? I love you'," said Mr Beastall.
The film, which was made in 2014, was posted on social media after Mr Beastall saw a John Lewis-Elton John Christmas advert, which he described as moving but lacking heart.
It has since had an overwhelming response with millions of hits.
"People were sending me messages telling me that they had lost loved ones recently, or perhaps they had lost children as well. It's so sad, and I have really tried to respond to those people, just to say thank you".
There are now calls for the big stores to hire the filmmaker for the next year's ads.
ITV News
