Amani aims to shine a light on the next generation of cyclists, and to show how Meta’s vision for shared, immersive experiences in the metaverse has the potential to enable everyone to participate in new ways.

The film tells the story of Team Amani, a group of cyclists from Rwanda, Uganda and Kenya, trying to make their mark on the world of cycling. But what begins as a story about cycling becomes a future vision of the metaverse, in which Team Amani is able to transcend the boundaries of geography, and realize their greatest ambition.

Maintaining authenticity was key to telling this story. And so, from script to execution, every aspect of the film was co-created in partnership with Team Amani and Meta, and developed through a six-month-long collaborative process involving countless hours of athlete interviews and research. On set, our crew filmed the team in their training camps in Iten, Kenya and Masaka, Uganda, imbedding with the team and spending off-hours delving deeper into their worlds. This informed countless elements of the production, including the metaverse scenes: avatars were created using motion capture of the athletes themselves, while details like the boardroom and AR training goggles were brought to life in close collaboration with Meta’s AR and VR teams and Team Amani.

Visually, we wanted to capture cycling in a way that hasn’t been seen before, and to fully immerse the viewer in the stories of these athletes. All footage was captured using multiple cameras— including Alexas, drones, Super 8s and a Fisher-Price video recorder. We also worked with the legendary Tony Hill to design bespoke rigs to play off the circular motion of a bike wheel, which becomes a visual leitmotif throughout the film. The CGI sections include “camera movements” that match the language of real-life cycling and reflect the technological possibilities of AR, VR and mixed reality.