BBC Creative Gets Hearts Racing with Beautiful Olympics Launch Film

BBC in-house creative agency, BBC Creative have teamed up with Nexus Studios to create the launch film for BBC coverage of the Olympics.

Host city, Paris, has been taken over by a new kind of love. It’s a deep, burning passion between an Olympic athlete and their sport.

Watch 'Paris 2024 Olympic Games | Official Trailer - BBC' here.

Drawing a close parallel between romantic love and the love athletes have for their sports, the film depicts the trials and challenges they face, followed by the rewards and sheer joy that come from being at the top of their game.

We are taken winding between Parisian landmarks such as the Sacré-Cœur, Eiffel Tower and Notre Dame Cathedral, whilst the film’s French narrator guides us through the symptoms of sporting love.

The film is set to timeless French love song Hymne A L’Amour (Hymn to Love) by Edith Piaf, which was inspired by the love of her life, French boxer Marcel Cerdan. It sees snapshots of love interrupted by Olympians practising their sports, depicting the kind of love that makes your heart race.

As the scenes of sporting love build to a thrilling crescendo and the film comes to a close, we understand the athlete’s intense passion for their sports as we witness their successes come to life.

The film features 36 athletes, within 58 shots, showcasing a diverse range of sports and authentically capturing the subtleties and nuances in the expressions and movements.

Rasmus Smith Bech, executive creative director, BBC Creative said, “It’s a deep love for their sports that drives Olympians to achieve things that very few other humans on the planet have done before. I think this deserves to be celebrated with a beautiful campaign that I hope will transport audiences at home to the City of Love.”

Fx Goby, director, Nexus Studios said, "This film epitomises craftsmanship. Achieving its elegant final design required hundreds of hours, meticulously refining frame by frame, to preserve the essence of the original designs. Unlike typical 2D animation that relies on outlines, we used light and shadow to suggest volume, effectively recreating each illustration 25 times per second."

The film will premiere on BBC One during the EUROs programming and Olympics programming will air from 26 July on BBC One.