Paperblanks video retainer case study
Paperblanks makes journals and notebooks, many of them designed with licence partners. From September 2024 to October 2026 we made the films for its launches, most of them on a video retainer: a shoot day each cycle, a main film, short versions and photos. Here is every project, in order.
Launch films, adverts and social cuts for Paperblanks, from 2024 to 2026, project by project.
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How the Paperblanks retainer worked
A video team on call for a brand that launches a new collection almost every month.
- When
- September 2024 to October 2026
- Each cycle
- One shoot day, monthly, then every two months
- Films
- 31 films from fourteen projects
What Paperblanks needed
Films for a journal maker that launches new collections all year, many designed with licence partners such as Warner Bros. and Universal: a launch film for each one, short versions for social media and photos for the website, made quickly enough to leave time for the licence partner’s approval.
How each cycle ran
Paperblanks’ team sent the idea, often with its own script or deck. We turned it into a production plan, cast it, found the location, filmed on the day and sent a first cut, often within a week. Feedback came on Vimeo, and the approved film went to the licence partner.
How it changed
It started in November 2024 as a monthly plan with a shoot day each month. Shoot dates were booked months ahead, to keep licence approvals from holding up the next shoot. From February 2026 it moved to a two-month cycle, with the same shoot day, films and photos in each.
What each cycle included
- One shoot day
- One main film
- Two short versions for social
- Lifestyle photos from the day
- A production plan before the shoot
- End cards and legal lines for each licence partner
One shoot day, one main film, two short versions for social, lifestyle photos from the day, a production plan before the shoot, end cards and legal lines for each licence partner.
“Once again, thank you so much for being who you are and for this amazing partnership. We can come up with ideas, but without you, we wouldn’t be able to bring them to life.”
2024: the first films, then a retainer
Two launch films in September, then a retainer from November.
September 2024
Fall 2024 and the new Cahiers
The first brief: launch films for the Fall 2024 collection and the new Cahier notebooks, plus lifestyle photos, on a tight deadline. We filmed on location on 10 September and in our studio two days later, and the films went down well inside the company and online.
Two films
November 2024
The Christmas advert
The first film on the retainer: a family Christmas advert, with each gift named on screen. We filmed it in one day on 28 November in a Dublin studio dressed for Christmas, and the first cut was with Paperblanks four days later. They asked for a version to run again the next Christmas.
One film
2025: a film for almost every launch
Seven projects, from Spring 2025 to Stephen King’s Carrie.
January 2025
Spring 2025, in a gallery
A story film for Spring 2025, a range with designs from licence partners such as Le Petit Prince and Cartoon Saloon, set in a gallery we built across two rooms at Talent Garden on 28 January. Every licence partner approved it. The same brief brought short films for the Black Edition and the pencils.
Three films
March 2025
Planners 2026
A campaign for the 2026 day planners, filmed on 4 March at Paperblanks’ own office: a 47-second film about planning the classic way, on paper, then three upright social cuts, one for each planner format, and 169 lifestyle photos for the website and social media.
One film
May 2025
Fourth Wing
A launch film for the Fourth Wing journals, from a script by Paperblanks’ team: a reader drawn into the story in The Winding Stair bookshop, filmed on 19 May before the shop got busy, plus a product film in smoke and gold. The licence partner approved it, and it went live on 24 June.
Two films
June 2025
Fall 2025
From Masterpieces to Everyday Treasures: a mother and daughter story told across the years, for the Fall 2025 collection. We filmed it in a Dublin studio on 23 June, and Paperblanks approved the final version on 28 July. A Cahier reel from the same day ran in its back-to-school campaign.
Two films
July 2025
Wicked
Two films for the Wicked collection from one shoot day on 24 July, one around the Grimmerie journal and one about creativity, plus three product reels. Universal’s notes on music and credits came back in August, and every change went through Paperblanks to the licence partner.
Five films
August 2025
Harry Potter
Launch films for the Harry Potter collection, one idea for each Hogwarts house. Warner Bros. asked for no effects that look like Harry Potter magic, and we built the films around that. We filmed on 26 August, and the licence partner said the idea for each house worked.
Two films
October 2025
Stephen King’s Carrie
A launch film and a product reel for the journals inspired by Stephen King’s Carrie, filmed on 2 October. Paperblanks had planned a third piece for its tradeshow stand and made that one itself, so the whole shoot day went on these two films and the photos.
Two films
2026: every two months
Five projects on a two-month cycle, from Spring 2026 to Game of Thrones.
January 2026
Spring 2026
A 71-second launch film from Paperblanks’ own script: a woman spends a slow creative day at home, and the range appears as she writes, sketches and does a jigsaw. We filmed it in one day on 14 January, and it was signed off on 27 January with an end card for each licence partner.
One film
February 2026
Planners 2027
A 43-second launch film for the 2027 planners, cut from earlier Paperblanks footage plus new close-ups of the inside pages, filmed on the Spring 2026 shoot day. It ends on the line “Designed for every chapter of you”. Paperblanks marked it done on 25 February.
One film
March 2026
The Lord of the Rings
Warner Bros. had approved the campaign idea before we started. We filmed it on 3 March, across four sets in one house: a launch film ending on the line “A Journey for Every Fellowship”, and a product reel. Paperblanks signed both off in April, after one change the licence partner asked for: a smaller legal line.
Two films
May 2026
Harry Potter and L’Équipe
Two upright films for social media from one shoot day on 11 May: a Harry Potter story about a suitcase left behind by someone rushing for a train, and a film for the L’Équipe journals, which Paperblanks loved and sent straight to the licence partner. Photos for both followed.
Two films
August 2026
Fall 2026, Game of Thrones and three product reels
Three shoots in eight days: a stop-motion film for Fall 2026 on 5 August, product reels for Phantom of the Opera, Batman and Game of Thrones in our studio on 7 August, and a Game of Thrones advert in a bookshop on 12 August. The licence partners approved the stop-motion film and the reels.
Five films
What the retainer delivered
Two years, one team, and a film ready for nearly every launch.
- A film for every collection31 films across fourteen projects, from launch films and adverts to product reels and upright cuts for social media, with lifestyle photos from the shoot days.
- Licence partners said yesFourth Wing was approved and live within six weeks of the shoot. Every partner approved Spring 2025, and in September 2026 the partners approved the Fall 2026 film and the reels, saying they loved them.
- The first films won the retainerThe first films did well enough inside Paperblanks and online that its marketing team won approval for a retainer, and the work grew from two films to a steady run of launches.
What Paperblanks said
“The videos were a big hit within the company and online, which helped me secure approval to move forward with a more consistent plan.”
“Wow! This is absolutely beautiful. Thank you so much for always bringing to life what starts as just an idea in our minds or on paper!”
“There are no words to describe how easy and fun it was working with all of you. I'm so happy with the results so far.”
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