Standing on the Shoulders of Giants

Inspired by the vision of giants such as Gordon Moore, Gerard Philips, Ada Lovelace, and, of course, Isaac Newton, the father of science, the new ASML campaign is a humble homage to the giants of the past and a powerful statement of ASML’s unique position to pioneer a positive future for humankind and our planet with technology.

The film takes inspiration from Newton’s quote ‘If I have seen further, it is by standing on the shoulders of giants’ and how technology has changed the world in the last four decades. Imagination and engagement are bywords to stimulate the curiosity of the audience, an activity only made possible by technology powered by artificial intelligence.

LePub teamed up with director Rune Milton Olsen and his Copenhagen-based post-production company, Chemistry, to bring to life a common vision and use CGI, AI, and a mix of cutting-edge tools and techniques, like text-to-video, depth extrapolation, and stable diffusion. Each frame transformed into a digital time-lapse, depicting the journey of innovations, dreams, and accomplishments throughout the ages. A unique approach to the film treatment that has not been seen before, depicting ASML‘s distinct voice.

The AI processing was applied to all the frames, building step by step iterations. By reapplying CGI where needed, the sound and music started to be created to accompany the journey. Then was the process of adding texture to the images. This technique went beyond surface-level enhancements, introducing depth and character to every frame. Layering CGI, AI imagery, and optical imperfections, near-invisible nooks and crannies, lens aberrations, dust, and general magic, to create extraordinary visuals not previously seen in generative sequences.

The film was made with 1,963 Midjourney prompts that yielded 7,852 images, which were edited and then rendered by more than 900 computers. These renders were then processed by RunwayAI, with the total film covering 25,957 frames at 1,000 MB per frame. The trickiest scene was Isaac Newton and his apple among the planets. It took more than 20 attempts to get Newton’s scene right, producing more than 9,800 frames.

A tribute to AMSL's incredible journey, designed to inspire its team and create a cinematic masterpiece that embodies the essence of technology, innovation, and curiosity.

The film was launched at ASML’s yearly all-employee event on Tuesday, January 30th, and shared through their social channels. The film has also been localized for use in Japan, China, Taiwan, Korea, and Germany.