Mars Wrigley-owned chocolate brand Maltesers is using the medium of video calls to show there can be a humorous side to life under lockdown, in a new coronavirus-era addition to its ongoing "Look on the Light side" campaign. 

A series of new U.K. TV ads via AMV BBDO feature a group of female friends socializing over video calls. Topics under discussion include video dating and putting makeup on to impress a hot guy during the "Clap for carers" moment on Thursday nights. There's also a call that gets Zoombombed by one of their mothers and another in which they sit in companionable silence. James Rouse of Outsider directed the film remotely with spot-on performances—it's not hard to believe that these women are good friends. 

“We wanted to show that even if we’re lucky enough to have our health and our family, we might need a little (socially-distanced) help from our friends to get through lockdown," said Kerry Cavanaugh, marketing director at Mars Wrigley U.K., in a statement. "Maltesers’ long-running ‘Look on the Light Side’ campaign has always celebrated universally awkward and embarrassing situations by laughing through the tough stuff. Now we want reinforce the #stayhome message by reflecting the reality of life at home and the ways that women are laughing together through the everyday ups and downs it brings." 

While the campaign, airing on social media and on Channel 4's On Demand platform, is humorous, Maltesers is being careful to make it clear that for some, isolation is no laughing matter. There's also a social component in partnership with mental health charity Mind, which will be signposting help and advice for those struggling with isolation.