PRODUCTION TIMELINE

Week 1-2: Treatment development & AI styleframe iteration (1,200+ variations)
Week 2: Production shoot (1.5 days, 40 setups)
Week 3-8: Post-production (, VFX compositing, color grading, finishing)

Step 1: Treatment Development (Week 1-2)

Rather than adapting the original concept, I built an entirely new treatment from scratch, structuring Soul's journey as a classical hero's pilgrimage:

  • Act I: Soul walks the Ethiopian highlands, praying for guidance at Biete Medhane Alem

  • Act II: Trials in the cave (serpent and lion), divine footprints leading him forward

  • Act III: Bishop's blessing, vision of ancestors, ceremonial coronation with incense and umbrellas

  • Act IV: Celebration before the Debre Libanos Waterfall, community rejoicing

This narrative framework gave the video iconic symbolism and emotional arc—transforming simple performance footage into a spiritual epic.

Step 2: AI Styleframe Generation (Week 1-2)

Once the narrative was locked, I populated the treatment with over 100 AI-generated styleframes, iterating continuously (over 1,200 iterations in total) through pre-production to refine the look and approach—making on-set execution as guesswork-free as possible.

Tools tested: Google Veo 2, Runway ML, Midjourney, and Kling 3.0 (we experimented with multiple platforms to determine which delivered the best results for each scene type)

We generated styleframes exploring:

  • Ethiopian highland landscapes at golden hour

  • Interior architecture of Lalibela's Biete Medhane Alem church

  • Dramatic cave systems with volumetric lighting

  • Cosmic "heavenly" environments with god rays and celestial elements

  • The Debre Libanos Waterfall surrounded by celebration

  • Thunder and lightning storm backdrops

  • Demera bonfire ceremonies with sparks and smoke

Reference influences: Star Wars (epic scale), Ben-Hur (spiritual grandeur), 300 (dramatic lighting), Gladiator (throne room majesty)

Color palette strategy: Earth tones, deep blues, reds, whites—colors of nature balanced between warm and cold to evoke spiritual transcendence

Approval process: Virtual storyboard sessions with Soul-Rebel, Joseph I (producer/wardrobe), and department heads, iterating on lighting, color palette, and spiritual authenticity.

Step 3: AI Environment Generation (Week 1-2)

Once styleframes were approved, we generated full-motion 4K AI backgrounds tailored to each narrative beat:

Google Veo 2 for:

  • Physics-accurate water simulations (light refraction, surface tension)

  • Atmospheric phenomena (fog rolling through highlands, dust particles in god rays)

  • Natural movement (clouds drifting, fire flickering)

Kling 3.0 for:

  • Dramatic cinematic lighting (chiaroscuro, rim lighting, volumetric beams)

  • Dynamic action sequences (lion emerging from darkness, lightning strikes)

  • Elements feature: Multi-angle object mapping to maintain consistency of the lion, throne, and architectural details across multiple shots

Why This Approach Worked:

  • Stock libraries lacked specific Ethiopian sacred architecture

  • AI enabled precise art direction (exact lighting angles, color temperature, composition)

  • Cost efficiency: API fees for 40+ custom backgrounds = $2K vs. $15K+ for stock licensing and compositing labor

Step 4: Production - LED Wall Shoot (Week 2)

Location: XRStage LA (Glendale) - 30-foot panoramic curved 4K LED wall
Timeline: 1.5 days of principal photography (40 setups)
Camera: Sony Venice (exceptional dynamic range for LED wall integration)

On-set workflow:

  • Pre-loaded AI-generated backgrounds onto LED wall playback system

  • 80% of setups used AI environments; 20% used green screen projected through LED for flexibility

  • No LUTs created in advance—shot in S-Log3 for maximum latitude

  • Lighting designed with modularity: setups could change "with the flip of a switch" to accommodate rapid scene transitions

  • Color temperature matching: Practical lights motivated by LED background colors (warm candlelight glow, cool storm atmospherics, etc.)

Critical advantage of LED vs. green screen: The LED wall cast interactive light onto Soul-Rebel and the set—creating authentic rim lighting, reflections in eyes, and environmental spill that's nearly impossible to replicate convincingly with green screen compositing.

DP Selection: I specifically hired Director of Photography Jacob Caron for his LED wall experience and enthusiasm about the AI integration, ensuring technical fluency on set.

Step 5: Post-Production - Finishing for Broadcast (Week 3-8)

Timeline: 6 weeks
Editorial: Assembled narrative arc emphasizing Soul's transformation from pilgrim to crowned king

VFX/Compositing (40% of shots required work):

  • 30% used DaVinci Resolve Magic Keyer (AI-enhanced edge detection)

  • 60% used Delta Keyer (standard chroma key refinement)

  • 10% used After Effects KeyLight 1.2 (complex hair/motion blur scenarios)

Upscaling/Enhancement:

  • All AI-generated footage required uprezzing to broadcast 4K

  • Custom "upscaling cocktail": Astra + Topaz Video AI (iteratively tested blend ratios for optimal sharpness without artifacts)

Color Grading Workflow:

  1. Color Space Transform (S-Log3 → DaVinci Wide Gamut → Rec.709)

  2. Exposure/contrast balancing

  3. Selective color (emphasizing earth tones, deep blues, spiritual whites)

  4. Midtone detail enhancement

  5. Final sharpening and focus refinement

Audio: Traditional vocal recording with strategic use of ElevenLabs for scratch vocal tracks during pre-visualization