From cows breaking wind to the struggles of working from home, here is our pick of the latest in video communications. For more from #CommunicateLens, follow @Communicatemag.

Apple

Apple launched ‘The whole working-from-home thing,’ a 7-minute video about the struggles (and at times joys) of working from home during the Covid-19 pandemic and how Apple hardware and software can alleviate the stress. The video features ‘the underdogs,’ a group of office workers who starred in Apple’s debut short-film last year. The video follows the ‘Underdogs’ as they deal with their angry boss and an imminent deadline, while being interrupted by the likes of the home life, including noisy kids, hairless cats, dogs, and overbearing mothers. The video is like a funny mini-sitcom, mostly through the Underdog’s webcams s they constantly zoom one another, from the early hours of morning to late in the night. Above being humorous, the video is very relatable. For anyone who has been forced to create an office space in a matter of day in their homes, be it in the childhood bedroom or between one crying kid and the other, recognises all the struggles. The audience is watching an amusing replay of what is happening in their living room.

Burger King Mexico

Burger King Mexico created a humorous, rhyming two-minute video to announce its effort to help tackle the environmental impact of beef, a central industry challenge. The video opens with a little boy dressed in white holding a guitar, who walks through a makeshift cow farm as he sings away the process by which when a cow breaks wind, it release methane, a chemical compound that pollutes the planet. ‘So to change their emission Burger King went on a mission testing diets that will help reduce their farts,’ the boy sings, as the chorus of kids behind him holding chemistry glasses goes: ‘That’s a start!’ The video is a good attempt at tackling a pressing global issue like climate change in a funny and entertaining way, where the viewers can laugh, crack a joke and muse at the kids’ cute singing voices while also realising serious actions must be taken. The fact the video solely stars young kids not only appeals to Burger King’s target audience (and their families) but also further emphasises the idea that the future generation is taking responsibility to cure and nurture our planet.

Zwijnenburg

Zwijnenburg, a construction, machining and shipbuilding company based in Rotterdam, worked with Eyecatcher, a film production company in South Holland to launch a new corporate video to celebrate its 65^th anniversary. The two-and-a-half-minute video, with its momentum-filled music, and the deep Hollywood-style narrating voice of the narrator, resembles a cinematic trailer preparing its audience for the next big hit. ‘For 65 years now we are known the world over for our unwavering dedication to quality and the highest safety standards always inspiring the next generation to strive for greatness just as the previous one did,’ says the narrator, his words reflecting the grandeur of the company’s achievements. High- res aerial shots throughout the video mark its steady and responsible growth, from ‘nothing but a dream to the great and versatile Zwijnenburg we know today.’ 

The video is also an ode the Netherlands, the company’s homeland; ‘It’s here [in the Netherlands] where we truly feel at home and where we learn no dream is too big and no job is too small,’ says the narrator.

WIPOTEC-OCS

German inspection solutions company WIPOTEC-OCS, a subsidiary of WIPOTEC, one of the world’s leading businesses for dynamic weight technology and product control, create ‘Track & Trace,’ a brief explainer video on why tracking and tracing systems to eliminate counterfeit are conquering more and more areas of ones daily life. In the video, global sales director track & trace at WIPOTECT, Volker Discher begins by exploring the innovations of the Track& Trace product range, which has gradually expanded from pharmaceuticals to other industries, such as the cosmetic one. As Discher speaks, the video features different shots of the Track & Trace manufacturing space, giving the audience a clearer idea of the processes that are behind eliminating counterfeit mentioned by the narrators.