As the storied fast-food chain's recent U.K. ad campaign makes clear, Fancy a McDonald's? is a question best asked and answered with a raise of the eyebrows and a dance out of the office. The campaign's #RaiseYourArches television spot was directed by Edgar Wright and features the skillful camerawork of cinematographer Jake Polonsky, BSC; the duos previous collaborations include the 2021 music documentary The Sparks Brothers. In this Q&A, Polonsky shares how Wright's affinity for anamorphic helped steer their decision to capture the spot with C Series optics supplied by Panavision London.
Panavision: How would you describe the look of this spot?
Jake Polonsky, BSC: The aim with the look was a kind of heightened reality, so I wanted some beautiful lenses, but without the feeling that we were in a movie.' The choreography was key, and once we had an idea from Jen White, our wonderful choreographer, of how the movement would work, then it was time to start to choreograph the camera. The camera is always moving, whether on a dolly, Steadicam, crane or drone we needed to be as kinetic as the office workers, if not more.
One of the things that I really like about Edgar's work is his sense of humor with camera movement. Not many people have a feeling for this, but over the years that I've worked with him, I've come to know Edgar has a very specific sense of where he wants the camera to be when. With this kind of project, it's also about how to get the humor out of what you show the audience in specific moments. Whip pans, snap zooms and so on all help to make the language of the camera more engaging by adding punctuation and emphasis to specific pieces of action and looks.
Were there any particular visual references you looked at for inspiration?
Polonsky: We didn't discuss a lot of references for this ad. I think we jointly had a clear sense of what we were aiming for, without needing to base it on someone else's work. But in terms of Edgar's previous films, it felt like this had the most in common with Baby Driver, in terms of how everything was being driven by the music track. From the very first agency script I read, the Yello song Oh Yeah' was an integral part of the film, and many parts of the action and camera were tied to specific moments in that song.
What brought you to Panavision for this project?
Polonsky: I know Edgar loves anamorphic lenses, and for me, the C Series still represents the gold standard of everything I look for in anamorphic glass a perfect level of softness and gorgeous flares, all in compact, reasonably light housings. You really can't go wrong with Cs in my opinion. Every time you put one on a finder or a camera, the world just looks more interesting.
The Cs softened off the edges of what could otherwise have been quite a sterile-looking location. We were filming in the old Diageo building in West London, which has a lot of straight lines and hard edges. Having a little curved funk' around the edges added some personality to the place.
How did this project compare to others in your career?
Polonsky: This was an opportunity to take a lot of my knowledge and experience and roll it into a short project with a very talented director. I've spent a lot of the last few years on longer TV shows, and it's nice to have the chance to be back in a world that I started out in commercials and music videos where it can be a bit more of a sprint' rather than a marathon.' On a shorter project, you can bring a lot of energy to every shoot day.
Another big difference was the process that Edgar has, which involves as much rehearsal as possible. We mapped out every part of the spot before the actual shoot days, with the real cast in place, which allowed an awful lot of troubleshooting and creativity to happen in advance.
What inspired you to become a cinematographer and what keeps you inspired today?
Polonsky: My dad sneaked me into the Renoir Cinema in London to see Peter Greenaway's Drowning by Numbers when I was a kid. For some reason it hit me like a thunderbolt. Michael Nyman's music, Sacha Vierny's photography, and Greenaway's unique approach to filmmaking. I'd never seen anything like it. My path was set.
As far as today, I believe inspiration can be anywhere in a random light reflection in your living room, a beautiful meal, a conversation with an old friend, or at an exhibition of photos you've never seen before. I think as long as you keep looking and experiencing, you can keep finding inspiration around you. Right now, I'm really enjoying Rick Rubin's book on creativity, The Creative Act. I'd love to film him at work.
Most recent headlines
18/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
18/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
18/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
18/12/2025
Long-term agreement includes the SES SCORE platform and hybrid distribution worldwide to deliver more than 5,000 hours of golf tournaments annually featuring th...
17/12/2025
Investigative journalists across the Western Balkans and T rkiye continue to con...
17/12/2025
Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame Inducts 10 Industry Icons During Unforgettable ...
17/12/2025
ESPN to Debut MNF Playbook with Next Gen Stats, a New AI-Driven NFL Data-AltCastThe series, powered by Adrenaline TruPlay AI, launches Dec. 22 and runs through ...
17/12/2025
Inaugural Optum Golf Channel Games Debut Under the Lights' in Primetime on ...
17/12/2025
The right playlist is essential on New Year's Eve, building the energy as you get ready and keeping it high as you count down to midnight. This year, Spotif...
17/12/2025
eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({...
17/12/2025
Audiences Watched Over 103 Billion Minutes of TV on Thanksgiving Day
NFL Games ...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
KPop Demon Hunters Stars Visit Berklee for Weeklong Celebration Andrew Choi and EJAE, who voiced the film's main characters and contributed to its soundtr...
17/12/2025
December 17 2025, 17:00 (PST) Dolby and LG Unveil a New Era of Home Audio With ...
17/12/2025
Wednesday 17 December 2025
Heated Rivalry will be coming to Sky and streaming service NOW on 10 JanuaryTurn on cookies to view this content. Go to Privacy opti...
17/12/2025
Back to All News
Inside The Unseen World Of Indian Customs: Netflix Reveals The...
17/12/2025
Back to All News
Netflix announces PAPARAZZI KING: the docu series coming to Ne...
17/12/2025
Back to All News
Netflix Unveils First Look at Jo Nesbo's Detective Hole Pr...
17/12/2025
Back to All News
Netflix Welcomes Warner Bros. Discovery Board Recommendation
Business
17 December 2025
Global
Link copied to clipboard
After Careful Revi...
17/12/2025
RT has announced that Kathy Fox has been appointed Commissioning Editor with re...
17/12/2025
The Hao AI Lab research team at the University of California San Diego - at the forefront of pioneering AI model innovation - recently received an NVIDIA DGX B...
17/12/2025
Editor's note: This post is part of Into the Omniverse, a series focused on ...
17/12/2025
With the new season of Dancing with the Stars shimmering in the not-too-distant future this New Year, the celebrity and dancer pairings of the twelve couples ha...
16/12/2025
Hawkins has landed on Spotify, just in time for Stranger Things Season 5, Volume...
16/12/2025
Wherever you are, your favorite music and audio content should go seamlessly with you. That's why Spotify has partnered with NAVER Corp, Korea's leading...
16/12/2025
2025 Wrapped arrived bigger and bolder than ever. This year's experience is designed to be ultra personal and shareable, with new features like Wrapped Part...
16/12/2025
Three 12-kilowatt Advanced Electric Propulsion System thrusters, supplied by L3Harris Technologies, form the core of Gateway's propulsion system. Pictured i...
16/12/2025
The challenge facing America's defense industrial base is not just about speed - its about rebuilding the foundation that makes speed possible. Our nations ...
16/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
16/12/2025
SEVILLE, Spain Canal Sur, the public broadcasting service for Andalusia, Spain, has completed a total technology refresh based on Pebble's resilient, softwa...
16/12/2025
NEW YORK Teleprompting hardware provider Telescript International has acquired all software code and intellectual property previously owned by Telescript West. ...
16/12/2025
As cable operators face increased competition from 5G fixed wireless access providers, a new report from Ookla Research finds that T-Mobile is the FWA speed lea...
16/12/2025
Apple has announced a major upgrade to the Apple TV app for device owners outside the Apple ecosystem with news that the Apple TV app for Android now supports G...
16/12/2025
Space42 grows Direct-to-Device partner ecosystem through a Memorandum of Underst...
16/12/2025
16 Dec 2025
VEON Announces Release Date for Full Year and Fourth Quarter 2025 R...
16/12/2025
16 Dec 2025
VEON's Kyivstar Invests in Renewable Energy in Ukraine with Acq...
16/12/2025
Back to All News
Emma Appleton, Fares Fares, Frida Gustavsson and Jakob Oftebro...
16/12/2025
Back to All News
Docu-reality My Korean Boyfriend Gets a Trailer and Premiere D...
16/12/2025
Harmonic's XOS Advanced Media Processor Improves Streaming Video Quality and Boosts Viewer Engagement SAN JOSE, Calif. - Dec. 16, 2025 - Harmonic (NASDAQ: ...
As the storied fast-food chain's recent U.K. ad campaign makes clear, Fancy a McDonald's? is a question best asked and answered with a raise of the eyebrows and a dance out of the office. The campaign's #RaiseYourArches television spot was directed by Edgar Wright and features the skillful camerawork of cinematographer Jake Polonsky, BSC; the duos previous collaborations include the 2021 music documentary The Sparks Brothers. In this Q&A, Polonsky shares how Wright's affinity for anamorphic helped steer their decision to capture the spot with C Series optics supplied by Panavision London.
