THE BRIEF
As part of the televised campaign for “Harry’s South Pole Heroes” a documentary following Prince Harry and a team of wounded veterans on their 335km trek to the South Pole for the charity Walking With The Wounded, our team was approached with a powerful creative challenge. Our goal was to provide a visual centerpiece for the campaign, capturing the harsh, frozen beauty of the South Pole to help raise vital awareness and funds for the charity.
How we approached the design
We worked closely with the production team to design sculptures that would serve as a powerful metaphor for the veterans’ journey.
To ensure the highest quality for the cameras, our team pre-carved the core structures, focusing on intricate details like the expedition’s branding. We used our CNC machine to etch logos with 1mm precision, subsequently “frosting” the text with water so it remained sharp and visible under studio lighting.
For the live filming, we utilized a mix of high-impact tools like chainsaws for the dramatic initial cuts, and picks and chisels for texturing. Hot plates provided the final polish, ensuring the sculptures looked professional and perfectly crystalline on film. The shoot was a success, and we moved through the shot list efficiently, meeting the client’s timeline perfectly.
The outcome
Creating highly detailed ice art is a slow, methodical process that isn’t ideal for a fast-paced film set. To maintain quality without sacrificing production time, we adopted a phased approach.
We prepared the primary sculptures in advance, focusing our on-camera time on the most cinematic stages of the process. By carefully planning the workflow with the director, we identified exactly which techniques like aggressive chainsaw work and fine detail etching would look most compelling on screen. This hybrid method ensured the sculptures were flawless while providing the crew with the high-energy visuals they needed.