‘Emil Is a Lover, not a Fighter’
Emil the Seal has firmly inserted himself into the hearts of LBB’s Editorial team, following his appearance in the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) latest ad, promoting its Firm Checker tool. The new brand mascot is a physical animatronic seven foot seal made from rubber and fibreglass who literally slaps people out of making bad financial decisions. The campaign message reminds consumers to check their offers before they ‘seal’ the deal.
The hero film, directed by Thomas Ormonde, sees people in ordinary situations about to make potentially catastrophic financial mistakes, before Emil miraculously appears to calm them and encourage them to check the legitimacy of these deals.
LBB’s Cathy Meyer-Funnell spoke to M+C Saatchi’s senior creatives Billie Gurr and Tom Lander, and producer Matt O’Neill, to discuss the campaign creation and delve into why a seal is the perfect choice to communicate the brand’s serious financial message.
LBB> Why was a giant seal the right choice to convey the message of the FCA?
Billie> We wanted a device that could literally embody the phrase “seal the deal” and then interrupt it. Seals are familiar, disarming and slightly absurd, which makes them perfect for cutting through a category that’s often heavy, serious and ignored.
Scams and fraud are no joke, so this character couldn’t be silly. There needed to have a sense of authority. And while seals might appear cute, they’re powerful animals you wouldn’t want to mess with, especially not a giant one standing in front of you in the office.
By introducing Emil the Seal in moments of decision, we turned a well-worn idiom into a physical interruption. A slippery, firm slap of a reminder. The humour lowers defences, but the message lands hard, because the consequences are anything but funny.
LBB> What was the process behind the creation of Emil the Seal himself?
Billie> Creating Emil was one of our favourite parts of the campaign. From the get-go, we spent a tonne of time exploring how this creature would manifest on screen.
We explored form intensely; from puppetry, CGI, the character being part-human, part-animal, a human in a suit, before settling on animatronic, before leaning heavily into AI as a visual exploration tool. AI image creation allowed us to generate thousands of versions, pulling out the best bits, and covering the agency walls with options to get people’s instinctive reactions.
Alongside this, we worked super closely with our director, Thomas, to understand how our choice would impact performance. That collaboration led us to a seven-foot animatronic build, that felt genuinely real in camera but still allowed for human mannerisms and emotional connection when interacting with actors.
Once in production, we deliberately tweaked the proportions of a real seal for comedic effect. An oversized, low hanging belly, deep chin rolls, longer flippers for optimal interruption, larger unblinking eyes, and a shorter snout with a warm, almost knowing expression. His skin was flocked with a fur-like texture that caught the light beautifully, and his face was engineered to breathe, helping him feel uncannily alive. Finally, a performer stepped inside the suit to bring Emil to life, combining physical performance with mechanical realism to create a character that was present, playful, and completely believable.
LBB> How did the actors interact with Emil the Seal?
Tom> Emil being an actual, physical, walking presence really helped him (or rather the man inside him) bring a larger-than-life aura to set.
The team at MillenniumFX who did our creature creation had someone inside the suit, someone controlling his facial expressions, and someone blowing air into his cheeks to make him breathe. In every sense of the word, Emil really was in the room. This meant our actors could fear, react, touch, and ultimately thank the real deal.
All of the slapping and pointing was done with a disembodied flipper on a stick. Which I think is still in Matt’s living room.
LBB> Talk us through the composition of the music
Matt> Music was always going to be essential in building the tension and delivering the payoff, for an ad featuring a giant seal intervening before you make a bad financial decision. We selected the perfect composer in Charlie Smith, whose brief was to strike a delicate balance between a dreamlike atmosphere and an undertone of authority, all primed to be abruptly interrupted by a well-timed thwack of a seal fin. Once we reached the edit, the composition truly elevated the film, creating the awkward tension we were aiming for. Ultimately, the music helps signal to the audience that Emil is a lover, not a fighter, and very much here to help you Seal the Deal.
