Dubbed the ‘Tarmac Fairy Tale’, the festive film with a construction twist opens with Tarmac employees packing away their things – inspired by a real Tarmac employee ‘Ibby’, who is seen turning the lights off in a cabin and leaving for the Christmas break. In the background, there is a Christmas tree with a proud fairy sitting on top.
Left in darkness, startled and wondering where everyone has gone, the fairy plucks up the courage to make a quick escape and investigate further.
Flying over J5 and J6 of the M6 in Birmingham, passing Tarmac’s iconic asphalt and concrete plant in Washwood Heath, the fairy swiftly continues her journey through quarries and the Tarmac-owned Panshanger Park in Hereford. The fairy eventually finds herself at ‘Ibby’s’ home on Christmas Eve, culminating in a finale where she finally understands –everyone has gone home to spend much-needed time with their loved ones for Christmas.
Ibrar ‘Ibby’ Akram, a multi-skilled operative based at Tarmac’s asphalt and concrete plant in Washwood Heath and inspiration for the main character, said: “This is the first time that someone’s made a cartoon version of me – it’s really cool!
“When I started at Tarmac, I was one of the youngest on my team, and it felt like being the younger brother of the family. Tarmac feels like one big family, and it’s one of the reasons why I see myself having a long and successful future here.”
Kate Jones, head of communications and corporate affairs at Tarmac, said: “A fairy seemed like the little bit of magic we could all do with this December. Although things have changed somewhat over the past few years, the evening before Christmas remains special for so many reasons. The film captures the essence of the final drive home before Christmas and all the emotions that come with that.
“Christmas is all about togetherness and spending quality time with the people (and pets) you love. We’re proud to have based the animation on a real Tarmac employee and other nods to everything that our colleagues do. We hope people enjoy our festive film just as much as we do.”
View the Tarmac Festive Film here.
