• by Sarah Mahoney , 2 hours ago

For two of the world’s most colorful brands, this year’s holiday message comes in softer tones. Both Crayola and Lego are pushing emotion over spectacle, each using imagination—not technology—as the connective tissue that brings families together.

Crayola’s new “Blue Christmas” film tells the story of a young girl who learns her dog, Pickle, can’t see red or green. To include him, she transforms her family’s celebration into a blue-hued wonderland, turning empathy into an art project. Developed with Dentsu Creative and Dentsu X, the spot runs through Dec. 21 across YouTube, TikTok, streaming video, and the Hallmark Channel, Crayola’s corporate parent.

Seven Crayola products make cameos, but the brand’s focus is bigger than crayons. “Blue Christmas” expands on the company’s ongoing “Campaign for Creativity,” which aims to “inspire more creative moments in the world.” It’s less nostalgia for childhood craft tables and more a statement about imagination as empathy—the idea that color, like love, can adapt to someone else’s worldview.

That tone also surfaces in Lego’s new holiday film,  “Hello…Is it play you’re looking for?” The spot revives an almost-disaffected preteen’s sense of wonder through a cheeky reworking of Lionel Richie’s classic, performed by Darth Vader, Glinda, Elphaba, and Batman.

Directed by Steve Ayson and produced by Lego’s in-house agency, the film showcases the work of five master builders who used 97,000 bricks to construct a set featuring dragons, disco helicopters, and more than 200 minifigures.

“This holiday season, we’re inviting families to dive into a world of imagination and fun,” said Nic Taylor, senior vice president and head of the Lego Agency, in the announcement. “Our Lego Holiday Choir is here to remind everyone about celebrating the joy of play and the magic that happens when we come together.”