PS4 psychological adventure The Town of Light gets live-action trailer

The Town of Light is a very special game, one which is not so easy to explain to anyone who does not already know it. I felt the best way to make that introduction was with this live trailer.

The trailer emphasises adherence to reality that is one of the most important features of the game, whilst on the other hand it has the ability to emotionally engage the viewer – emotional involvement is another fundamental aspect. Empathy with the protagonist is the key to fully appreciating The Town of Light and I think that seeing Renée in the trailer helps to act as a prelude to the game experience itself which will of course be the pinnacle of this relationship between Renée and the player.

I hope this trailer can help you understand what the Town of Light is and what we as developers set out to achieve whilst at the same time enrich the experience of the game itself, that’s why we decided to include the video too within the game.

Creating the video was a great adventure. Everything was shot in 4K in just two days using a Sony alpha 6300 with the support of a Yuneec drone. Thanks to the great cooperation of the council in Volterra and Pisa we were lucky enough to be able to film in the real locations where the game is set.

Between the crumbling pavilions of the former psychiatric hospital at Volterra and the museum there (which is ordinarily closed to the public), we were even able to include in the film original objects and clothing from the asylum which you can see surround the actors within the scene.

The video shows Renée, in 1944, 6 years after she was admitted to the psychiatric hospital. She is recording the memories of her life before being admitted to a diary that you will find within the game, the memories within now lost. My intention was, alongside Sóley’s heart-wrenching track, to describe the past that is now confused and blends with the present through a black and white that, in addition to representing the memory and the past, paints the colourlessness of a prematurely broken life.

It was not easy to find an actress that resembled the protagonist of the game, let alone to manage to with a few shots to convey all the pain the game was trying to tell.

We were helped in our search by the Toscana Film Commission, which I would like to thank, through some schools of acting. Eventually we were lucky to meet Camilla who was very good!

Seeing her become the character, being carried away by emotions was a powerful experience. There were moments when I seemed to be facing Renée, there was no need to say anything, just point to the room as if to shoot a documentary, something that really was just happening… it made me shiver, I’m sure it will be so for you too.