ILLUMINA
TruPath™ GENOME
Roles: Creative / Art / Animation Direction, Design, Animation and Compositing.
A sizzle film for TruPath™ built through cinematic abstraction, shaped to feel compelling without drifting away from the science. A project where science and creativity were welcomed into every frame.
To make that possible, and to give ourselves room to think through ideas, we first had to understand the system properly. We worked closely with Illumina’s experts to break down the mechanics, logic, and constraints behind the technology
The Challenge
How do we create an engaging cinematic film that:
→ Reflects mapped read technology
→ Maintains scientific fidelity
→ Aligns with Illumina’s brand language
→ Passes internal scientific review
Approach
The solution began with structure "storygraphs" and storyboards.
Storyboards became the working tool that kept the project aligned, both visually and technically. They were the anchor that helped keep the film clear, engaging, and scientifically accurate.
Once that structure held up under scrutiny, we moved into full production, where the visual system began to take shape.
STORYBOARDS
First explorations
Sequence 01
Sequence 02
Sequence 03
Sequence 04
Sequence 05
STYLEFRAMES
R & D
MUSIC & SOUND
DNA in the scale of C
Part of the research led to the idea of DNA vibrating at about 2 GHz. Transposed from that microscopic speed into sound, it would register at roughly 500 Hz, between a B and a C.
I mapped the piece visually in the edit and passed that structure to long time collaborator Pim van den Heuvelwho tailor the right soundtrack.
Visual Map → Audio
Visual Map → Editing & Context
Pim van den Heuvel
Music always starts with a concept that provides creative restriction, inspiration, and value to the image I’m scoring. Since DNA was the concept, and DNA strands are based on the letters C, G, T, and A, this was a great starting point.
The musical alphabet contains the letters A, B, C, D, E, F, and G.
Naturally, C,G, and A can already be used as notes.
Since T isn’t a musical pitch, I decided to use E, the third of C and the fifth of A.
Harmonically speaking, we can create several chords from this base:
Together, the letters A-C-G form an Am7 chord.
Alternatively, C-(E)-G-A form a C6 chord.
After creating this theoretical framework, I mapped out the shape of the piece: where do we build towards, and what is the intention of the video? In this case, Juan had already created this structure for me, so I set up a tempo map and created markers that followed his thinking.
I then carefully selected sounds that fit the technological world we were building and named them by function.
Through play, and by deliberately choosing to break free from the design constraints, I developed a theme and sound that fit the technology and its narrative.
Production Company
Morea TV
Executive Production
Kevin Pham
Associate Production
Marcos Medvedov - Viartco
Creative / Art / Animation Direction
Juan Behrens
Design / Animation
Gautier Sire
Juan Behrens
Music / Sound
Pim van den Heuvel - Hill and the Valley