
The team at Moonraker VFX discuss making great TV remotely for Netflixs new series History 101
By Contributor
Published: May 21, 2020
The team at Moonraker VFX discuss making great TV remotely for Netflix's new series History 101
target=_blank title=Share on LinkedIn class=share-linkedin> The team at Moonraker VFX discuss making great TV remotely for Netflix's new series History 101
https://www.tvbeurope.com/production-post/is-it-possible-to-create-high-end-content-while-working-remotely title=Share via Email class=share-email>
With film crews set to return to work under restricted circumstances and production companies likely to be working from home for the foreseeable future, the TV industry is facing a novel challenge. Producing new content is essential in keeping viewers engaged, but how can this be achieved by a dispersed team?
History 101, a new type of documentary series produced by ITN Productions, debuts on Netflix in the UK on 22nd May. The series shines a light on how new content could be created under these new conditions, and Moonraker's animations were on the front line of making this possible.
Completed earlier in the year, prior to lockdown, it's easy to say History 101 is eerily forward-thinking in that the production was compiled solely with a combination of stock footage and animation, requiring no filming at all.
Delving into a diverse range of subjects, from robots to HIV/AIDs to nuclear power, the show takes viewers on a historical journey through unique archive footage. Each episode examines the importance of the topic and its significance in the world today.
Building narrative and visual identity through animation Working with a collection of shots from ITN's archive, Bristol-based VFX studio Moonraker were tasked with the creative challenge of illustrating the complex historical narrative behind the footage whilst also creating a visual identity unique to the show something that was impossible to achieve with archival shots alone. This was delivered through playful animated sequences, to create an overarching style over varied topics, presenting information to the audience in an engaging and humorous way.
From the outset, the challenge for the Moonraker team was to create a coherent style across such a broad range of complicated historical subjects and high volume of animations. Alex Dilworth, senior art director of the series, explains: The challenge with archive footage is it can feel quite distant, our role was to inject humour and interest through animation, helping illustrate the complicated ideas within each episode in a fun way and bring the programme together stylistically.
The team used a host of tools from the Adobe CC suite alongside C4D to create the animated content, which provided a stylistic identity to the series. Incorporating 3D and 2D animation, Moonraker were also keen to reference a range of animation styles, with the aim of adding further depth to the series whilst also bringing the stock footage, and all episodes, together using a consistent artistic style.
Executive director, Simon George, comments: The animation and design elements for History 101 were critical for two reasons. Firstly, for providing clean and dynamic information sections for the viewers, and secondly in forming the overall identity for the show.
Producing content with remote teams While History 101 sets a precedent for how production companies can revisit old footage and repurpose it into new content that appeals to modern audiences, the combination of animation and stock footage is also a process that can be effectively replicated as the industry continues to work remotely.
Scott Metcalfe, who produced the series at Moonraker, is confident that the process can be repeated for future productions: The way this project worked, using stock footage and then collaborating as a team to create the visuals, coupled with how we can work remotely, means we could do another series almost immediately, he says.
We could tackle any subject now with virtually no obstacles, even in lockdown conditions.
Adapting to change Even before lockdown, Moonraker has been working hard to replicate the systems and dynamics of the studio at home to facilitate home working. With a combination of early planning and remote logins, Moonraker artists are able to access the studio network and machines from their home devices.
Alex Dilworth, who recently joined Moonraker as senior art director, says this foresight is the reason the team have been able to transition relatively seamlessly to a new way of working. The reason we can work almost as efficiently at home is due to having access to our studio systems. The whole network is still there , he says.
In terms of the creative process and working collaboratively as a team, channels such as Slack have been an effective way to facilitate the informal conversations of the studio, whilst pipeline tools such as Shotgun enable the team to share and edit footage.
Dilworth concludes, I am sure we will see many more programmes revisiting archive material in the upcoming months as the industry looks for innovative ways to produce fresh content. That being said, nothing replaces the collaborative process you get from the studio.
SubscribeFor more stories like this, and to keep up to date with all our market leading news, features and analysis, sign up to our newsletter here.
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
02/05/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
01/05/2026
January 5 2026, 18:30 (PST) NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to ...
02/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
02/04/2026
Already deployed extensively by NBC Sports, FOR-A Corporation will demonstrate GoVertical! AiDi, the real-time 9:16 autocropping feature of viztrick AiDi, durin...
02/04/2026
Interra Systems, a provider of end-to-end quality assurance solutions for the digital media industry, announced that Elite Media Technologies has selected its B...
02/04/2026
Harmonic's Media Processing Solutions Maximize Bandwidth Efficiency for Terrestrial Broadcast Delivery
Harmonic (NASDAQ: HLIT) today announced that TDF, a...
02/04/2026
NBC Sports Deploys viztrick AiDi to Stream Live Events in 9:16 Mobile-First Formats with Auto Tracking, Development Signals Strategic Shift for FOR-A
Long reco...
02/04/2026
Evergent will showcase new innovations in subscriber lifecycle management and monetization at NAB Show 2026 (Las Vegas, April 18 22), including:
New advances i...
02/04/2026
Riedel Communications is proud to be part of Binghamton University, State University of New York, Athletics' milestone year, celebrating the university'...
02/04/2026
Encompass Digital Media and Techex have today announced new, fully managed, cloud-native Master Control services designed to meet the growing operational demand...
02/04/2026
Avid today announced it will showcase new innovations designed to help media companies win in the new media economy at NAB Show 2026 (April 18 22, Las Vegas Co...
02/04/2026
PlayBox Neo helps AIS PLAY kick-off premier football content direct to fans
PlayBox Neo has provided MIMO Tech with a brand-new major installation to extend it...
02/04/2026
Globo has transitioned its primary content distribution to Secure Reliable Transport over a fully IP-based managed backbone using Synamedia's Quortex PowerV...
02/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
02/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
02/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
02/04/2026
Student Spotlight: Al-Fadl Salem The Danish singer recently performed for the queen of Denmark.
April 1, 2026
By
Editorial Staff
Image by Junia Morrow
Wh...
02/04/2026
Taku Hirano's Career Is Defined by Identity Whether he's performing, composing, teaching, or developing instruments, the do-it-all percussionist sees ...
02/04/2026
2FM Breakfast to extend on weekday mornings from 6am to 10am
Doireann Garrihy m...
02/04/2026
RT News & Current Affairs is pleased to announce the appointment of RT Radio 1 reporter, Barry Lenihan, as Political Correspondent.
Barry has reported across...
02/04/2026
No joke - GFN Thursday is skipping the tricks and heading straight into the games. April kicks off with ten new titles, bringing fresh adventures to GeForce NOW...
01/04/2026
As sports media organization continue to seek out new ways to streamline their p...
01/04/2026
The SVG GFX Forum hit New York City earlier this month for a day packed with sessions focused on the creative strategy and technology behind today's cutting...
01/04/2026
This year, Spotify celebrates the five-year anniversary of EQUAL, our global pro...
01/04/2026
Analogue-style tape splicing in the digital domain
In this era of digital recording and multiple layers of Undo, it seems that the fading art of tape splici...
01/04/2026
Latest release introduces new Orbita Engine
Zero G's latest release marks the start of a new series of libraries, as well as introducing an all-new engi...
01/04/2026
Until now, one format has largely been left behind
Warm Audio's extensive product range includes modern-day recreations of all manner of sought-after s...
01/04/2026
A piano with glass vessels for strings!
The Crow Hill Company's recently released Gong Piano offered a refreshing new take on piano libraries, harnessin...
01/04/2026
Remote Streaming Studio Condenser
Aim Audio have just revealed their latest creation, the ESSENCE RS Remote Streaming Studio Condenser, which becomes the wo...
01/04/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) is pleased to announce that the ca...
01/04/2026
Bilbao, April 1st, 2026 - AgileTV, a leading provider of end-to-end TV technolog...
01/04/2026
Green Hippo is excited to announce the launch of its new Hippotizer Media Server training courses at Pixel Academy, a purpose built AV learning hub combining ha...
01/04/2026
TAG Video Systems, a global leader in IP-native broadcast monitoring, multiviewing, and quality control, today announced a collaboration with Oracle Cloud Infra...
01/04/2026
Professional Wireless Systems (PWS), a leading provider of wireless audio solutions and RF management, was on site at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, wher...
01/04/2026
AgileTV, a leading provider of end-to-end TV technology solutions, has deployed next , the new IPTV platform of the Austrian telco LIWEST, marking the first st...
01/04/2026
LTN, a leader in fully managed IP video transport, and Ateme, a global leader in video compression and delivery solutions, today announced a collaboration integ...
01/04/2026
Adobe Unveils Powerful New Innovations for Creative Pros in Adobe Illustrator
Deepa Subramaniam April 1, 2026
0 Comments
I'm excited to share that...
01/04/2026
Boland Communications Introduces QD4K315HDR10 QD-OLED Series Monitors for Live P...
01/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/04/2026
Mediagenix Showcases Semantic Intelligence-Powered Title Management, Schedule Op...
01/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/04/2026
Victoria Mon t Brings the Multi-Hyphenate Mindset to Career Jam 2026 The Grammy-winning singer, songwriter, and producer shared how versatility and self-inves...
01/04/2026
UKTV today announces that Jonathan Newman has formally stepped into the role of ...
01/04/2026
A New Season of Expression: Save 30% On Ivory 3There are moments in music when everything changes-when new ideas break through and redefine what's possible....