Creative Brief

For Channel 5’s Emperors, a three-part historical documentary series, October Films tasked Little Shadow with creating a cohesive graphic language that would enrich the storytelling while staying grounded in the era. The visual concept centred on reimagining the drama of ancient Rome through the lens of its own frescoes. The brief required a stylised, textured design that could unify interviews, reenactments, and historical context while standing out from standard documentary visuals.

Our Approach

We developed a suite of fresco-inspired animations using a hybrid workflow that integrated AI-assisted image generation and traditional compositing techniques. Each animation was based on stills of the actors in costume, reworked to resemble aged Roman mural paintings. Facial details and wardrobe elements were fed into AI tools to generate interpretations, which were then refined and layered in Photoshop. 

To bring these static images to life, we created multi-plane parallax animations using After Effects-introducing depth and motion without breaking the illusion of age and texture. We applied grained, faded overlays and cracked-surface treatments to emulate the patina of ancient wall art, ensuring the effect remained consistent across all sequences.

In addition to these hero fresco animations, we produced map sequences, family tree explainers, and the title design for the series – all adopting the same visual language. This ensured a consistent historical tone throughout, with each element supporting the central themes of power, legacy, and imperial mythology.

The Results

The fresco-style graphics provided a distinctive visual identity for the series, reinforcing its historical tone while adding motion and engagement. The animations seamlessly complemented the live-action segments, helping viewers navigate timelines, relationships, and context across the three episodes.

See here for a great article written by the Series Director, Bob Marsden for Broadcast Now: https://www.broadcastnow.co.uk/behind-the-scenes/emperor-the-rise-and-fall-of-a-dynasty-channel-5/5199395.article