From the Sails: Light Years

Sydney Opera House commissioned Art Processors’ Creative Director, Sam Doust, to create a film and sound experience that captured the history of the building. It was to be the launching event for a year-long program of celebrations.

They wanted to tell the story of the Opera House’s creation as well as the people who brought it into reality and filled its spaces with performance of all forms. From the earliest stories of the First Nations owners to its ongoing contribution to the Sydney community, the challenge was to capture the spirit of a place that is central to the Australian cultural landscape.

As a recognised subject-matter-expert on the history of the Sydney Opera House—not to mention an award-winning motion artist—Sam was uniquely placed to create a spectacular event that translated the wealth of stories into an artwork that spoke to all audiences.
 

My prior expertise in the many facets of the story was never more useful than beginning to think how best to visualise and represent, in an inclusive manner, the creativity and abundance of this world-renown performance venue.

– Sam Doust, Creative Director, Art Processors

Added to that, it would be the first time the House was telling its own story through the popular “Lighting of the Sails”, but also the first time the projections were being accompanied by live synchronised audio that could be accessed by anyone, anywhere, online. 

Bringing an artistic and curatorial lens to the project, we emphasised significant moments across the past 50 years but with elements of delight and abstraction that spoke to a creative future for the Australian community.

Choosing which performances to feature proved to be one of the most complex challenges. We made sure the film encompassed a diversity of artists and eras, whilst also bringing the footage and images together in a sequence that would flow seamlessly across the Sails.

We collaborated with artist Jake Duczynski of Studio Gilay to create the opening, Wéllema Tubowgule, in celebration of the traditional custodians of the land and its significance as a meeting place. We also collaborated with CG artist Jason Poley and composers Hylton Mowday and Andrew Stevenson of We Love Jam to create an original score for the work.
 

The result was an epic 17 minute storyline in a continuous loop beginning and returning to a reflection on the land on which Sydney Opera House is situated, Tubowgule. It was a statement that said “this a special place”.

The film was also a celebration of the diversity of people who have breathed life into the iconic building. From those who undertook to raise the building into reality—Jørn Utzon, Ove Arup and Peter Hall—to the welders, carpenters, engineers and construction workers, the artists on its stages and the many creators backstage.

It explored the House’s construction and opening in 1973, before celebrating its legacy as a performing arts venue and the countless events that have brought the community together for half a century.

Audiences could choose how and when they encountered the film—people could take it in at any moment during the two weeks that it lit up the night skyline of the Sydney Opera House roof. The live synchronised soundtrack offered the chance for personal immersion as viewers took in the changing images across the Sails, or a shared moment of entertainment with others.