Paramount+ announced a multi-market partnership with Minute Media, Wavemaker and Kaleida to bring to life its latest brand campaign celebrating the hit series HALO. The projection is the latest in a series of global campaigns focused on HALO, which is based on the iconic Xbox franchise and has broken a new record as the service’s most-watched series premiere of all-time in the U.S. and internationally.
The partnership culminated with a giant 60 feet tall 3D hologram of HALO’s iconic Master Chief: Spartan 117. The 3D hologram was installed at world famous locations in Toronto, Mexico City, Sao Paulo and Sydney Harbour exclusively for one day on 17 April, bringing everyone’s favourite Spartan to life, for HALO fans around the world.
The Master Chief hologram was produced for Paramount+ by Minute Media, a global technology and content publisher, in partnership with hologram specialists, Kaleida, and media agency Wavemaker.
The record-breaking hologram, dubbed the ‘HALOgram’, scaled the equivalent height of a six-storey building and featured a custom 3D animation that saw the Master Chief land on Earth and assess the local surroundings. Each installation weighed over 24 tons and was built using over 100m of metal trussing to house 126 square meters of specialist hologram gauze.
“HALO has delivered a tremendous response among fans around the world as Paramount+’s most watched series premiere of all-time globally. We are proud to continue the momentum around the series by bringing HALO to life for fans in Australia, Latin America and Canada, in an epic and innovative way that only Paramount+ could achieve. This is a celebration to the fans and to this iconic franchise that continues to entertain people around the globe,” said Paramount senior VP streaming marketing, data and analytics Marco Nobili.
“Minute Media is thrilled to have been an integral part of bringing this innovative and ambitious project to life. Our priority is to empower partner brands, global publishers and content creators through innovation and video amplification. We are always looking to push boundaries with our partners and the HALOgram was a perfect opportunity to realize that vision on a global scale,” said Minute Media entertainment partnerships Ed Bovingdon.
“We’re excited to have been part of the creative concept and strategy for this pioneering project. At Wavemaker, we’re constantly looking to break new ground and reshape consumer experiences. By combining innovative ideas underpinned by our strategic media approach we’ve brought an epic moment to life for fans to enjoy worldwide,” said Wavemaker digital director Sophie Finckenberg.
“Kaleida is all about world firsts and creating works on a scale that have never before been attempted. The four largest outdoor holograms in the world, in a 24 hour period, is a challenge we were excited and honoured to be invited to take on,” said Kaleida co-founder Daniel Reynolds.
Paramount+ premiered the long-awaited series HALO on 24 March, becoming the most-watched series on the platform in its first 24 hours.
In its adaptation for Paramount+, HALO takes place in the universe that first debuted in 2001 with the launch of Xbox®’s first Halo game. Dramatizing an epic 26th-century conflict between humanity and an alien threat known as the Covenant, HALO the series weaves deeply drawn personal stories with action, adventure and a richly imagined vision of the future.
The series stars Pablo Schreiber (American Gods) as the Master Chief, Spartan-117; Natascha McElhone (Californication) as Dr. Halsey, the brilliant, conflicted and inscrutable creator of the Spartan super soldiers; and Jen Taylor (Halo game series, RWBY) as Cortana, the most advanced AI in human history, and potentially the key to the survival of the human race. Additional stars include Bokeem Woodbine (Fargo), Shabana Azmi (Fire), Natasha Culzac (The Witcher), Olive Gray (Half Moon Investigations), Yerin Ha (Reef Break), Bentley Kalu (Avengers: Age of Ultron), Kate Kennedy (Catastrophe), Charlie Murphy (Peaky Blinders) and Danny Sapani (Penny Dreadful). Also joining the cast as original characters are Ryan McParland (6Degrees), Burn Gorman (The Expanse) and Fiona O’Shaughnessy (Nina Forever).
Halo reinvented how people think about video games and has grown into a global entertainment phenomenon, having sold more than 82 million copies worldwide and grossing more than $6 billion in lifetime total sales revenue.
HALO is produced by SHOWTIME® in association with 343 Industries, along with Amblin Television. The first season of HALO is executive produced by Steven Kane, alongside Steven Spielberg, Darryl Frank and Justin Falvey for Amblin Television in partnership with 343 Industries, Otto Bathurst and Toby Leslie for One Big Picture, and Kyle Killen and Scott Pennington for Chapter Eleven. Kiki Wolfkill, Frank O’Connor and Bonnie Ross serve as executive producers for 343 Industries. The series is distributed internationally by Paramount Global Distribution Group.
HALO will return for season two.
