On Thursday 10th March 2022, StoryFutures Academy (The National Centre for Immersive Storytelling, run by the National Film and Television School and Royal Holloway, University of London) launched the world premiere and masterclass of short film Fireworks that uses cutting edge Virtual Production to tell its story.

Following the premiere screening, StoryFutures Academy Virtual Production Lead Prof. Peter Richardson welcomed Fireworks cast and crew to the stage for a Masterclass discussion on working with VP including: Two-time Oscar and BAFTA Award winner Paul Franklin (Interstellar, Inception); BAFTA Award winner Annalise Davis (The Railway Man, Up There) for Wilder Films; acclaimed screenwriter and playwright Steven Lally; VP Supervisor and Co-founder and CTO at Dimension Callum MacMillan; Actress Raghad Chaar (I Hate Suzie, Star Wars: Rise of the Skywalker).

Fireworks stars Charlotte Riley, Denise Gough, Ivanno Jeremiah, Sophie Wu, Hammed Animashaun, Raghad Chaar, Elysse Adil. Told in real-time in the moments before a potential strike on a Tripoli target, the film uses ground-breaking Virtual Production techniques to tell its story. Directed by double Academy Award winner Paul Franklin, produced by BAFTA winner Annalise Davis, written by acclaimed screenwriter Steven Lally. A Wilder Films production, in collaboration with Dimension, DNEG, Epic Mega Grants, Lipsync, and StoryFutures Academy.

Fireworks Behind the Scenes (BTS)
Produced by StoryFutures Academy, the Fireworks BTS series sits down with the team behind the Virtual Production short film. From the technology to the future of VP and filmmaking, hear from Fireworks’s Director Paul Franklin, Producer Annalise Davis, Production Designer Jamie Lapsley, Writer Steven Lally, and more!

Meet the team behind Fireworks, and learn about the history of how it came to be a Virtual Production in Episode 1 of Behind the Scenes, featuring exclusive interviews with the key creative team.

What is Virtual Production? This question is explored in Episode 2 of Behind the Scenes from the Fireworks set.

Episode 3 of Behind the Scenes explores pre-production processes and explores what the production looks and feels like, including the virtual and practical design, lighting and cine work in prep, as well as pre-vis.

Episode 4 of Behind the Scenes explores the technical hurdles and limitations of the LED screens and the use of different lighting systems. Explore the challenges of narrative versus games design and the computer power required of VP.

What lies ahead! Watch the final episode of the Fireworks Behind the Scene series.

Companies

StoryFutures