George Orwell's; 1984

George Orwells classic 1984, novel gets a modern-day reboot with a star-studded Hollywood cast, in the form of an audio book. Commissioned to initially concept a 30-second online teaser, the creative grew-legs, escalating to an international TV and social campaign, including a feature 60-second cinematic theatrical.

Collaborating with Josh Ellington - a San Francisco based analog-tech artist - we scripted a narrative which balance two of the novels key themes; identity and censorship. Centred around the books main protagonist, Winston Smith, we experience his oppressive existence under the scrutiny of Big Brother, accompanied by a diary monolog, read by Andrew Garfield.

Ellington’s clever Pepper’s ghost illusions were the perfect platform to manifest images of Winston’s identity, his idea of ‘freedom’. Subjects of which are simply an illusion in this world of totalitarianism and ultimately the source of his downfall. We visualise the contrasting metaphor of censorship through the persistence presence of Big Brother (voiced by Tom Hardy), the manipulation of language and the doublespeak propaganda messages of Ingsog.

The film was almost entirely capture in camera, with all footage, projections, documentation and props, designed bespoke for the production ahead of the shoot.

Credits

Role: Creative Director / Asst Director
Studio: Territory Studio
Client: Audible
Agency/Creative Partner: Alphabetical Studio
Director of Photography: James Medcraft
Artist: Josh Ellingson
Post Production: Stone Dogs
Audio: Forever Audio
Music: Muse