Oscar-winning filmmaker Peter Jackson has transformed First World War footage from Imperial War Museums’ extensive archive using modern production techniques for his film They Shall Not Grow Old.
Combining the footage with interviews conducted by IWM and the BBC, the film tells the story of what it was like to be a soldier during the war – from what they ate and wore to what it was like to participate in battles and tend to the wounded.
'It really felt like the natural thing to do…let them tell their story'
Footage has been colourised, converted to 3D and transformed using modern production techniques.
For Jackson, who has had a long-standing interest in the First World War, the experience of making They Shall Not Grow Old has prompted a new connection to the film footage that was recorded during the conflict.
‘I can connect with the First World War footage better than I ever have in my life, and I’ve been looking at this, I’ve been looking at documentaries and First World War film as long as I can recall, you know, for 50 years. And I’ve never seen anything that’s affected me as much as what I’ve seen in the last year,’ he said.
