While blended families are widely represented in Western advertising, remarriage and mixed homes remain taboo topics rarely touched upon by brands in the Middle East. 

With the goal of normalising and celebrating step-parents, United Arab Emirates home decor chain Home Centre has launched a touching campaign, titled The Creature, created by Leo Burnett and directed by Tahaab Rais through Prodigious Dubai.

A story of doubt, rejection, and fear countered with persistence, courage, and acceptance, it follows a young boy who adjusts to a giant monster living in his home. Through the course of the spot, the child’s perception of the creature starts to change, and he finally accepts him as his stepdad. 

The film is paired with an original soundtrack, titled The lighthouse and the boat, which portrays the relationship between two people – a stepfather and a son – as a lighthouse and a boat, two worlds apart, trying to fill a gap in their life.