“Creating powerful visual narratives for documentary storytellers"
So, Whats the big idea?
On set as DOP filming the promo content for Russell Kane’s Evil Genius 🤩.
Gigantic Films was founded by Director of Photography and filmmaker Nicholas Hine, forged in the real pressures of production workflows where decisions have to be right the first time.
Early defining moments came while working as a DOP and editor for Peace One Day, a UK-based non-profit, on the feature documentary Peace One Day: The Journey, and later with The Times alongside war correspondent Anthony Loyd on the mini-documentary Journalism – How It Works.
These were real tests of fact, rhythm, and pace — not because of scale, but because they reinforced a simple truth: stories only work when the camera knows where it belongs. That principle set the tone for everything that followed.
Those ideas still define everything we do.
Documentary-led by instinct, not by label
Gigantic Films collaborates with Directors, Producers, and production companies who care deeply about story, ethics, and visual integrity. Documentary thinking isn’t a buzzword for us. It’s a working philosophy.
Our portfolio reflects this:
Documentary-adjacent factual coverage in Laura Whitmore on Britain’s Teen Killers for A+E Networks / Crime+Investigation, tackling sensitive social questions with visual restraint and ethical awareness.
Narrative-driven broadcast Documentary The Body Detectives and Who’s Afraid of Nathan Law, served as one of two cinematographers on Episode 2 of Channel 4’s The Body Detectives, and the second cinematographer on the PBS documentary Who’s Afraid of Nathan Law, bringing documentary precision and cinematic clarity to sensitive investigative storytelling.”
Apple TV+ series True Crime Rewind, shot with a stripped-back, unsentimental camera that treats evidence and memory with equal weight, letting time, absence, and detail speak louder than reconstruction.
Narrative-driven broadcast promos for factual series including Ross Kemp – Mafia in Britain, Royal Autopsy – Fantasy Autopsy: Elvis, Russell Kane’s Evil Genius, and Will Mellor’s Cops Gone Bad for Hearst Networks / Sky History / Crime+Investigation.
BBC promo work for Famously on Trial, shot with just enough fun and mischief to match Stacey Dooley and Larry Dean’s curiosity without undermining the subject.
Character-led branded documentary storytelling such as Open Side with Lewis Moody and Alex Payne, where personal resilience anchors the visual language.
Purpose-driven films exploring health and recovery, including Cancer Research UK’s Luke’s Story — following Luke’s diagnosis and recovery from hepatoblastoma — and the NHS Best For You series on mental health and eating disorders in young people, where sensitive pacing and observational empathy were essential.
This is the kind of work directors and producers trust — work that handles nuance, gravity, and impact without overselling.
A collaborator, not just a supplier
At Gigantic, we work alongside creative teams, not underneath them.
Whether joining at development, pre-production, or stepping in as a trusted cinematography partner, we integrate into existing structures with minimal friction. We understand how documentary workflows ebb and flow, how subjects reveal themselves over time, and how to protect narrative integrity when schedules tighten.
We’ve done this across:
Broadcast promos with complex narrative hooks
Verité-informed factual pieces centred on real people
Branded stories that feel documentary because they respect the subject
Built for trust, precision, and endurance
Documentary filmmaking demands patience, judgement, and restraint. That’s where Gigantic Films operates best.
Our approach is:
Collaborative, not directive
Precise, not overproduced
Story-first, always
You won’t find us chasing style over substance. You’ll find a partner who shapes visual language in service of the idea.
Why Gigantic Films
Because producers don’t need cheerleaders. They need collaborators who:
Understand how to shoot interviews and vérité scenes that hold up under editorial scrutiny
Know when less is more in the frame — because the truth often lives in the gaps
Deliver work that is structurally sound and creatively calibrated
From BBC Sounds – Famously on Trial promos to purpose-led series for the NHS, our work demonstrates a commitment to complexity, clarity, and visual confidence — content that is editorially flexible and ready for broadcast.
That’s what documentary collaborators actually care about.
That’s what we build.