Bolt X Powers BritBox’s Ambitious ‘See It Differently’ Campaign
BritBox’s ‘See It Differently’ campaign contains an impressive mix of stop motion and live-action, with the Bolt X being key to making it work. Shot just one frame at a time, the team carefully adjusted costumes, props, and performers for each shot, while the Bolt X added smooth, precise camera movement, making every moment feel alive and full of character.
BritBox’s ‘See It Differently’ campaign contains an impressive mix of stop motion and live-action, with the Bolt X being key to making it work. Shot just one frame at a time, the team carefully adjusted costumes, props, and performers for each shot, while the Bolt X added smooth, precise camera movement, making every moment feel alive and full of character.
BritBox, Bolt X, What’s Next?
When BritBox set out to mark its fifth year in Australia with a bold new campaign, they wanted to do something truly different. Partnering with Uncommon Creative Studio, BlinkInk, and director Nicos Livesey, they created a 14-hour, single-take spot that blends stop motion and live-action into one ambitious and creatively genius piece of filmmaking with Bolt X at the heart of the shoot.
The film shows a viewer transforming into multiple characters across different genres including period, mystery, and crime. To achieve this, every frame had to be adjusted, with costumes swapped, sets re-dressed, and performers repositioned. And while all this change happened in front of the lens, the Bolt X tracked it all with pixel-perfect precision.
Shot at just one frame per second, the High-Speed Robot moved frame by frame, sometimes holding perfectly still and other times inching along a programmed path step by step. Its nine axes of movement meant the camera could weave smoothly through space, adding fluid motion to what would otherwise have been a series of static stop-motion images. The result is a rare blend of techniques with the patience and timeless craftsmanship of stop motion brought to life by the cinematic flow of motion control.
Executing a 14-hour single take at one frame per second is no small feat. Each adjustment, whether an actor’s position or a shift in set design, had to align perfectly with the programmed move of the Bolt X. Any deviation would break the illusion. Bolt X’s ability to repeat moves with millimetre accuracy meant the team could trust the camera to do its job while they focused on the intricate choreography in front of it.
Livesey, known for his work with Iron Maiden and Gorillaz, is no stranger to ambitious projects. He said, “An unspoken truth of any creative act is that the endeavour of a project can be as powerful as the finished article, you can feel the work in the work.” Here, the Bolt X became more than just a tool, it was the backbone of the entire production. Its reliability made possible a film that would have been nearly impossible to execute otherwise.
BritBox’s ‘See It Differently’ campaign celebrates the craftsmanship of British television, and the making of this ad mirrors that spirit. In an era where visual effects can be created in seconds with AI, this production leaned into the artistry of cinema craft, with every frame carefully constructed and every move painstakingly planned to show what real creativity can achieve and how human ingenuity is not quite beat yet.
The Bolt X didn’t just capture the work, it became part of it, stitching hundreds of small moments into one continuous, transportive experience. In a film where every frame, every move, and every carefully orchestrated detail comes together like this, audiences truly can see things differently.