
TVBEurope talks to the team behind the film about Eddie Jones and the Japanese rugby teams shock win at the 2015 Rugby World Cup
By Jenny Priestley
Published: September 29, 2023 Updated: October 3, 2023
TVBEurope talks to the team behind the film about Eddie Jones and the Japanese rugby team's shock win at the 2015 Rugby World Cup
target=_blank title=Share on LinkedIn class=share-linkedin>
Released globally earlier this month, The Brighton Miracle tells the true story of Japan's victory against the then two-time world champions South Africa at the 2015 Rugby World Cup.
Produced by Simon Le Bon, Yasmin Le Bon and Nick Wood of Syn Studios, alongside Tim Farmer of East Pool Films, and written and directed by Max Mannix, the film follows Eddie Jones, played in re-enactments by Star Wars actor Temuera Morrison as he prepared the Japanese rugby team for the game.
Temuera Morrison stars as Eddie Jones in The Brighton Miracle. Photo Credit The Brighton Miracle The film blends talking-head interviews with Jones and the players alongside re-enactments of events.
TVBEurope caught up with Nick Wood and Max Mannix to find out more about how they brought the film to the screen.
Where did the idea for the film come from? Mannix: I assisted Eddie Jones during his tenure as coach of the Japanese Rugby Team. With years of planning, it was Jones who drove the Japanese team - who at the time had the worst record in Rugby World Cup history to believe that they could beat South Africa, the strongest team in Rugby World Cup history. When it actually happened, and knowing up close the challenges the coach and captain overcame especially in relation to their health and losing family members -the idea for a film was difficult to ignore.
How did Syn Productions become involved? I knew co-founder Nick Wood from the fantastic work he was doing in Japan and internationally. We often spoke of working together and Nick's passion for this project was off the scale. Nick soon started recording music samples that captured the feel of the film and he also began attending producer meetings. The film wouldn't have happened without Nick and his fellow film producer Tim Farmer.
Nick Wood What does The Brighton Miracle refer to? The game took place in Brighton, UK. The media acclaimed the victory as a miracle. We used the title, The Brighton Miracle, as a working title and it eventually stuck.
In terms of filming, can you tell us what cameras and lenses you used? After consulting with DP, Jack Wareham, we decided to use the RED Camera system with Cooke S4 lenses. Jack conveyed to me how the RED camera system is so very versatile and economical, especially when shooting slow motion at a high resolution. As for the lenses, the Cooke S4s are the most natural cinematic lenses that don't need filtering to render a filmic look. So it was an easy choice.
Temeura Morrison as Eddie Jones and Lasarus Ratuere as Michael Leitch Did you use different cameras for the reenactments compared to the talking head scenes? Yes, after consulting with Jack, for the interviews we went with a Panasonic camera with Canon lenses. In post production, we blurred the corner of the interview frames slightly to give an anamorphic look that highlighted the interviewee.
What sound equipment did you use? Decisions were driven by Seth Jackson and Joel Hodgkinson of Soul Sound Design in Brisbane. All up, we used a 688 recorder. Lectrosonics wireless. DPA 6060 Lav mics, Schoeps cmit and Schoeps cmc6mk41 boom mics.
How was the film edited? Time was a big issue as we needed to hit a firm release date. Lead editor Cameron Hales was keen to edit in Adobe Premiere Pro. With the short turnaround we had three editors working around the clock under Cameron's direction.
Does the film include footage from the real match? Yes, we chose to use the real footage for the main game which, after permissions from World Rugby and key stakeholders (MasterCard, Land Rover, Heineken, DHL, Emirates and Soci t G n rale), we then sourced and negotiated footage directly from IMG.
Max Mannix How was the film colour graded? The film was graded in Resolve by Brisbane-based colourist Justin McDonald who was masterful in integrating the real game footage with the dramatic footage.
Is the film released in HD or 4K, and why did you choose that resolution? The film was finished in 4K so we could release it in cinemas and also so we could meet criteria for any streaming platforms.
What about sound, is it stereo or Dolby Atmos? We did a 5.1 surround Dolby mix and a stereo mix.
What was the biggest challenge of making the film? Apart from raising the budget, a lack of time to complete the project was definitely the biggest hurdle.
What's next on your development slate? A documentary about Japan's most noted Shogun, Ieyasu Tokugawa. Tokugawa ruled Japan from 1603 and was responsible for moving the capital from Kyoto to Tokyo. We are very fortunate to be working with Iehiro Tokugawa, the 19th generation head of the Tokugawa family, and last remaining direct descendent of Ieyasu Tokugawa.
The Brighton Miracle is available to watch now on iTunes, Amazon, Google Play, Vimeo and Microsoft Video.
Europe Stories
11/12/2025
Dalet, a leading provider of cloud-native, end-to-end media workflow solutions, ...
05/12/2025
Every year, Spotify Wrapped offers a personalized look back at the audio that defined your year. It's a snapshot of your listening habits, designed to tell ...
05/12/2025
In 2025, Spotify's EQUAL, GLOW, and RADAR programs celebrated women, LGBTQIA , and emerging artists who turned moments into milestones. From breaking record...
05/12/2025
In our latest blog, we explain how Wi-Fi 7 rollouts can drive consumer loyalty with value-add services such as consumer cybersecurity. We also explore how this ...
05/12/2025
Friday 5 December 2025
A new Game of Thrones Tale: Official trailer for Sky Exc...
05/12/2025
Tis the season of giving once again and this year we've taken our Give Back Fridays' concept and turned it on its head.
In the autumn we were approach...
05/12/2025
Brayden Gogis doesn't remember a time when he wasn't completely fixated on games in all forms. In preschool, when they asked us to dress up as what we ...
05/12/2025
The Grinch steals the spotlight as the theme for The Late Late Toy Show 2025
Tune in tonight at 9:35pm on RT One and worldwide on RT Player
#LateLateToyShow...
05/12/2025
RT Announces New Presenters of Flagship News Programmes
New RT Six One News co-presenter Tommy Meskill
Sarah McInerney & Justin McCarthy join Morning Ir...
04/12/2025
ToolsOnAir Blackmagic Design HyperDeck Event Presets for just:in mac pro 2025 & ...
04/12/2025
ToolsOnAir AJA Ki Pro Event Presets for just:in mac pro 2025 & just:in linux
More Details:Starting with version 5.5, both just:in mac pro and just:in linux sol...
04/12/2025
Wangu Kanuri from Kenya and Godwin Asediba from Ghana are two of this years finalists for Thomsons Young Journalist of the Year Award. The pair are runners-up i...
04/12/2025
Following today's EBU Winter General Assembly in Geneva at which Israel's participation in the 2026 Eurovision Song Contest was confirmed, RT 's pos...
04/12/2025
Thursday 4 December 2025
Sky set to co-produce the story behind the world's most famous whale
Image Credit - Free Willy Keiko Foundation
Sky will co-pro...
04/12/2025
Thursday 4 December 2025
Sky Original documentary Murder at the Post Office to ...
04/12/2025
OBJECT MATRIX
OverviewObject Matrix
OM Cloud
Quattro
SWARMOverviewSwarmSingle Node Swarm
Ngenea
Pixstor
Swarm Support
Object Matrix Support
Pixstor & N...
04/12/2025
FOX Advertising Announces Plans for 2026 Upfront Presentation Annual Presentation for Advertisers to Take Place Monday, May 11 at New Location, the Historic N...
04/12/2025
The ninth series of Dancing with the Stars returns to screens in early
2026 and will be proudly sponsored by Hyundai
Filling our Sunday evenings with glitz an...
03/12/2025
ToolsOnAir Composition Builder 2025 Boilerplate
More Details: The Composition Builder 2025 application for macOS enables TV stations and Live Event broadcast...
03/12/2025
ToolsOnAr just:live pro 2025 Boilerplate
More Details: just:live pro 2025 is a Single Channel Live Production Playout solution for video and static or real-t...
03/12/2025
ToolsOnAr just:play pro 2025 Boilerplate
More Details: just:play pro 2025 is a Single Channel automated 24/7 Master Control playout solution with SD, HD and ...
03/12/2025
ToolsOnAr live:cut 2025 Boilerplate
More Details: live:cut is an option to just:in mac pro 2025 and enables multicamera production workflows for up to 16 cam...
03/12/2025
ToolsOnAir Just In Mac Lite NDI 2025 Boilerplate
More Details: The Just In Mac Lite NDI application is a streamlined media capture solution designed specific...
03/12/2025
ToolsOnAir Just In Mac Lite 2025 Boilerplate
More Details: The Just In Mac Lite application is a streamlined media capture solution designed specifically for...
03/12/2025
ToolsOnAir just:in mac pro 2025 Boilerplate
More Details: just:in mac pro is a macOS-based client-server multichannel capture solution to record SDI, HDMI, N...
03/12/2025
Tracy Bonareri Onchoke, Thomson's Young Journalist of the year 2025 is hoping the accolade will be a springboard to more cross-border collaboration between ...
03/12/2025
For the fourth time, Bad Bunny is the most-streamed Wrapped artist on Spotify gl...
03/12/2025
The wait is over. It's time to look back at the audio that defined your year with 2025 Spotify Wrapped, our annual celebration for fans, artists, creators, ...
03/12/2025
Por cuarta vez, Bad Bunny es el Top Artista Global de Wrapped en Spotify, con 19...
03/12/2025
Spotify Wrapped is back, and as always, it's powered by the billions of streams that fans around the world delivered throughout the year. From the artists w...
03/12/2025
Spotify Wrapped is the moment when hundreds of millions of fans around the world...
03/12/2025
With more than 700 million listeners around the world turning to Spotify to soundtrack their lives, it's time to look back at the audio that defined the yea...
03/12/2025
Con m s de 700 millones de oyentes en todo el mundo usando Spotify para acompa ar su d a a d a, es momento de mirar hacia atr s y ver el audio que marc el a o....
03/12/2025
From page-turning thrillers to inspiring memoirs, audiobooks are becoming a core...
03/12/2025
Com mais de 700 milh es de ouvintes em todo o mundo recorrendo ao Spotify para embalar seu dia a dia, chega o momento de revisitar o udio que marcou o ano. Nos...
03/12/2025
Spotify Wrapped celebrates the audio that defined our year, and the annual globa...
03/12/2025
Wuppertal December 3, 2025
Riedel and Haivision Join Forces to Advance Wireless Video TransmissionRiedel Communications today announced a new partnership with...
03/12/2025
Tell us a little bit about your job I am a Digital Marketing Executive working on Paid Social, PPC, and Organic Social. I joined the team in May 2025 and am enj...
03/12/2025
SAN JOSE, Calif. and VIENNA - Dec. 3, 2025 - Harmonic (NASDAQ: HLIT) and Normann...
03/12/2025
S an Nollaig
Celebrate 2025's top Irish sporting stars with RT Sport Awards live from RT Studios on RT One and RT Player
RT pays tribute to Ror...
02/12/2025
eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({...
02/12/2025
--
The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC), the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), and the International Telecommunication Unio...
02/12/2025
Harmonic's cOS Platform Will Redefine Subscribers' Quality of Experience, Lowering Churn SAN JOSE, Calif. - Dec. 2, 2025 - Harmonic (NASDAQ: HLIT) today...
02/12/2025
S an Nollaig
Hollywood blockbusters The Banshees of Inisherin, Barbie and Oppenheimer make their Irish TV debut
Tune into the classics such as Love Actual...
02/12/2025
Showcasing fresh Irish storytelling and emerging talent Storyland 2025 signals a fantastic time for Irish drama
RT and F s ireann/Screen Ireland are proud to...
01/12/2025
MANCHESTER, UK - November 2025 - Announced two days before the 30th anniversary of Oasis' debut album, Definitely Maybe, the Oasis Live '25 tour marks t...
01/12/2025
01 Dec 2025
Kyivstar and Ukrainian Ministry of Digital Transformation Select Go...
01/12/2025
The prequel to the global hit Sky Original mob crime saga, Gomorrah' is a s...
01/12/2025
Featuring Florence Welch, Red Hot Chilli Peppers' Flea, designer Bella Freud...
01/12/2025
Fox Corporation Chief Financial Officer Steve Tomsic to Participate in Upcoming ...