Grand Central Opens Imperial War Museum Archives for 'Flight of the Stories'

To launch the new Imperial War Museum First World War Galleries and to commemorate the First World War Centenary this year, leading Soho sound studio GCRS has opened up the museum’s original WWI files to create a new film, in partnership with Aardman and Johnny Fearless.

The 90-second film, ‘Flight of the Stories’, depicts the journey of personal stories and letters written by those who never left the fields of Northern France during the First World War.

In the film, ‘quotation mark’ characters symbolising these stories emerge as lines are read from letters and diaries entrusted to the museum by relatives during, and at the end of, the First World War.

To create the authentic sounds used in the spot, sound designer Ben Leeves had access to the Imperial War Museum’s WW1 archives, including speech from soldiers, original letters and recordings of the types of artillery and weapons used in the battles of WW1.

Involved at the start of the process, Ben’s challenge was to make the original letters feel as though they were being read in the spirit in which they were written, rather than as dry historical documents.

Ben Leeves, sound designer, GCRS, comments: “To do justice to these powerful stories we needed to create a sound design that would truly bring to life the original source material, for viewers young and old.  

“Being given access to the original WWI files from the Imperial War Museum was an incredible experience and I am very proud of how we have woven together old and new sounds, with the voices of volunteers reading the letters, to create something that stops the audience in its tracks.”

Flight of the Stories will be screened online and in cinemas from this month, as part of a multi-platform campaign supported by posters, press, radio and online ads promoting the new First World War Galleries.

The posters feature the stories of personal objects will run in Underground stations on cross-track and platform posters, tube cards and digital panels.

Imperial War Museum London and the new First World War Galleries will reopen on 19 July 2014 ready to mark the official start of the Centenary commemorations.

Credits

Client: Penny Hamilton, Head of Brand and Marketing, Imperial War Museum

Agency: Johnny Fearless

Executive Creative Director: Paul Domenet

Art Director: Pia Knight

Copywriter: Paul Domenet

Planner: Anne-Fay Townsend

Account Director: Sarah Keates

Agency Producer: Christian Lobo

Production Company: Aardman

Director: Darren Dubicki

Producer: Helen Argo

Post Production: Aardman/Big Buoy  

Sound Design: GCRS

Sound Designer: Ben Leeves