Capturing Greatness: Behind Samsung’s ‘Voices of Galaxy’ Olympic and Paralympic Campaign
As the Paris Olympic Games drew to a close on Sunday, and the world awaits the opening of the Paralympics (and the return of Les Phryges), many of us are reflecting on the displays of human strength, determination and endurance that were showcased at the games. Perhaps, however, we forget to consider the training and preparation that led to those all-important moments.
Harnessing this idea, Samsung worked with production company Stadium and director Nicholas Woytuk to capture four Samsung Galaxy users and athletes – Grace ‘Sunny’ Choi, Mejdi Schalck, Johannes Floors and soon-to-be gold medalist Sifan Hassan – just 100 days before the games began, for a documentary-style global campaign entitled ‘Voices of Galaxy’.
Spanning 12 days of production across four countries and two continents - Netherlands, France, Germany and New York - the series accumulated an impressive 25 million views following its release in the month leading up to the 2024 Olympics and Paralympic Games.
To find out more about how the campaign came together, and his experiences working with athletes at the height of their preparations for the games, LBB’s Abi Lightfoot spoke with Stadium director Nicholas Woytuk.
LBB> What was the script like for this project and why was it something you were keen to get involved in?
Nicholas> I was hyped on the overarching campaign. The realm of 'branded sports doc' is a pretty open-source type of concept. Many of my talented peers have created breathtaking work in the space and I was excited to bring something new to the table. I always try to seek out avenues for originality, especially when the brief has some openness to it. When UEG reached out, I was excited to try something new, while still remaining curious about each athlete and their story. This flexibility in approach allowed for a unique blend of creativity and storytelling, which is something I deeply value in my work.
And it was the Olympics, so I was down from the jump. The Olympics is such a unique and globally unifying event, bringing together the best athletes from around the world, each with their own incredible journey. Capturing their experiences and the spirit of the competition is a rare opportunity. Being part of something this monumental and having the chance to tell those stories in a fresh, engaging way was special. It's a chance to push the boundaries of conventional sports documentaries and bring a new perspective to the audience.
LBB> It was a large-scale production effort, taking two months and spanning four countries over two continents. What was this experience like? How did you manage everything?
Nicholas> It was all about finding the right core crew. People that you knew you could spend a great deal of time with and not hate one another at the end. You are basically married to these folks for a period of time, so the ‘courting’ process was one that I took pretty seriously. Ultimately, we all came together and are still friends today. With a project like this, there were so many variables to consider — language barriers, travel windows, weather, athlete schedules, and finding local crews in small markets. The experience was both stressful and gratifying. I’m just thankful that, in the end, we ultimately delivered on our goal: creating something that does justice to each athlete's story.
LBB> You recorded these athletes just 100 days before the start of the games, how did it feel to observe their preparation for the games, and how did what you witnessed influence the final campaign?
Nicholas> Beyond all of the physical work that the athletes were putting in, the mental aspect of their training truly inspired me and ultimately influenced the edits. Outside of their rigorous training schedules, they each had a ton of media obligations to fit in. It felt like lining up on the tarmac of an airport — our production was just one flight in the queue ready to take off. Any stress I felt managing the four different shoots quickly dissolved when I considered how much more they had on their plates. I used that as a connection point during the pre-interviews and the on-camera interviews. I made them aware that I was very conscious of their time and understood the outside pressures (of which I was technically one). This led to very genuine conversations that made our films much more real.
LBB> The campaign spotlights four athletes from around the world, showcasing four unique personalities and their individual events – why were these athletes the perfect fit for the campaign?
Nicholas> We were given a list of Samsung athletes - a BIG list. Samsung had a lot of different campaigns around the Olympics and the agency, clients, and stadium ultimately landed on the Sunny, Mejdi, Johannes, and Sifan for a list of reasons but I’m glad we were able to narrow it down to the four. They each brought a unique perspective to the table, yet were all connected by one common goal.
LBB> What was the process like of capturing the athletes? How much time did you have and how were they to work with?
Nicholas> We did not have a lot of time with each athlete. Usually, with a big brand spot, you only get a few hours with the talent, and that's fine because you only need to capture their 'scene.' However, working within the documentary format, your interview alone can take up those few hours, leaving very little time to capture the auxiliary scenes. We had to fit everything we were doing with the athletes into one long, action packed day, and then use a second day for pickups. It was crazy and fulfilling at the same time.
But everyone was cool; they understood what we were trying to do and gave it 100%. We shot Sunny in her car ride back to her house, and it was a really nice moment that we used in the edit. We did a lot of that - just the DP and myself, getting into an intimate setting and leaning into the doc vibe.
Above, behind the scenes images from production
LBB> How did you select which archival footage to use, and blend it in with the original content that you filmed?
Nicholas> For some of the veteran athletes, pulling archival was a relatively straightforward process as they had a great deal of footage already available. Sifan Hassan, for example, is one of the best long-distance runners in the world and has some incredible moments to look back on. There were a few races that I watched prior to her interview, which I brought up during our conversation. Asking her to describe the emotions during those particular races led us to some amazing sound bites that we used to cut alongside the archival footage. As a storyteller, it's important to look back at the past and really show the progression of the athlete.
LBB> Tell us about the music and sound mix, as it’s an interesting combination of a song along with sounds of the athletes' respective environments and sports. How did this come together?
Nicholas> Everything comes full circle. Lately, I've been inspired by '90s/2000s artists and knew I wanted to bring that type of energy into the trailer. It’s funny because, watching a lot of the campaigns surrounding the Olympics, it seems like other folks are in the same boat. I had a track that I was really down with, but it was used in a spot that came out a month before ours, so we had to pivot a bit. It's really about distilling the exact soundbites you need to convey the emotion and supporting that with adequate sound design elements. Our editor, J.P. Damboragian, had a lot to do with the distillation process, and I really have him to thank. Otherwise, this edit would be like three minutes long.
LBB> What was the biggest challenge you encountered over the course of the project, and how did you overcome it?
Nicholas> For me personally, it’s about balancing the documentary style of production with a more storyboarded brand shoot. With a doc, you can have a very small crew, be extremely flexible, and let the story elements unfold in real time. Since this was a hybrid, we had to control the scenes a bit more, which meant more crew and less flexibility in being able to turn the camera anywhere we wanted. In the end, we hit our stride and carried the learnings from each location and country into the next - with a bit more confidence.
LBB> Finally, is there anything you’d do differently if you had your time again?
Nicholas> I learned a lot of valuable lessons from this project, and I would probably do a bunch of things differently if asked to do it again. That being said, it really comes down to putting your time in and learning how these big campaigns operate. Understanding the dynamics of such large-scale productions is crucial — knowing which battles you need to fight and accepting that sometimes you can't control everything.
There were moments when I had to adapt quickly and make decisions on the fly, balancing creative vision with logistical constraints. It's also about managing expectations and being prepared for unforeseen challenges. This project taught me the importance of flexibility, patience, and effective communication with the team. In hindsight, there are definitely areas where I could streamline processes or improve collaboration, but each experience adds to my growth as a filmmaker. Ultimately, the key takeaway is that every project is a learning opportunity, and embracing that mindset gives me confidence to run it up again!
