There are no small roles in the Royal Marines
Partizan and Martin Stirling capture the full weight of every role in new Royal Marines film.
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Partizan director Martin Stirling has directed a new campaign for the Royal Marines, reframing how potential recruits see the breadth and significance of specialist roles within the Corps.
At the centre of Wonderhood Studios’ creative campaign is a cinematic film, which challenges the assumption that life in the Royal Marines is defined solely by front-line combat. Instead, it focuses on the technical expertise, operational precision and interdependence that underpin every mission.
Structured around the arc of a single mission, the film reveals how multiple specialist roles work in constant relation to one another. From communications and engineering to navigation and tactical support, each contribution becomes essential to the success of the whole.
Shot in Norway, the campaign marks a first for the Royal Marines, using Arctic terrain as both backdrop and pressure point. The scale and severity of the environment mirrors the demands placed on those operating within it, grounding the film in a landscape that is already central to Royal Marines training.
The work carries his characteristically raw, grounded and visceral visual language, balancing cinematic scale with documentary texture. Shot with real Royal Marines, the film leans into authenticity, focusing on the concentration, precision and quiet intensity that define life behind the broader mythology of combat.
Credits
View on- Agency Wonderhood Studios
- Production Company Partizan/London
- Director Martin Stirling
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Credits
View on- Agency Wonderhood Studios
- Production Company Partizan/London
- Director Martin Stirling
- Editing Trim
- Music Wake The Town
- Chief Creative Officer Josh Green
- Creative Director Steve Hawthorne
- Creative Michael Arthey
- Executive Producer Tash Dean
- Associate Producer Imogen Ryan
- Executive Producer Jenny Beckett
- Head of Production Ella More O'Ferrall
- Producer Daniel Wheldon
- DP Carl Burke
- Editor Matt Newman
- Executive Producer Claudia Celeste
- Post Production
- Post Producer Chloe Saunders
- VFX Supervisor Jim Allen
- Senior VFX Producer Robson Yeo
- Colorist Jonny Tully
- Audio Post
- Sound Engineer Sam Robson
- Music Supervisor Harley Beckmann Hawksley
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Credits
powered by- Agency Wonderhood Studios
- Production Company Partizan/London
- Director Martin Stirling
- Editing Trim
- Music Wake The Town
- Chief Creative Officer Josh Green
- Creative Director Steve Hawthorne
- Creative Michael Arthey
- Executive Producer Tash Dean
- Associate Producer Imogen Ryan
- Executive Producer Jenny Beckett
- Head of Production Ella More O'Ferrall
- Producer Daniel Wheldon
- DP Carl Burke
- Editor Matt Newman
- Executive Producer Claudia Celeste
- Post Production
- Post Producer Chloe Saunders
- VFX Supervisor Jim Allen
- Senior VFX Producer Robson Yeo
- Colorist Jonny Tully
- Audio Post
- Sound Engineer Sam Robson
- Music Supervisor Harley Beckmann Hawksley
“It felt like old-school filmmaking in the best sense; we were embedded with the Marines for ten days in the Arctic, producing in an environment where the scale, terrain and conditions demanded constant problem-solving and adaptability. That meant staying responsive without ever losing precision, and the result was a film with a level of grit and honesty that came directly from being fully immersed in that world.” said Dan Wheldon, Producer, Partizan
Stirling said: “Royal Marines commercials are legendary for good reason. Dramatic, cinematic, epic in scale. This latest campaign was no different in ambition, but it presented a distinct creative challenge.
The brief was to move beyond the iconic image of the commando kicking down doors and reveal the full breadth of the Corps: the engineers, the specialists, the support roles that are every bit as important as the action on the front line. The beauty was that we had a unique location to do it in, the Arctic. Punishing temperatures, unforgiving terrain, and an environment that pushed every member of the production to their limits. We traversed frozen rivers and scaled ice-locked waterfalls to get the shots we needed. And in doing so, we discovered that making this film demanded exactly the same qualities we were trying to capture: determination, grit, and the ability to adapt when the conditions change.
None of it would have been possible without the Commandos themselves. Working shoulder to shoulder with them in that environment gave us the authenticity we needed to tell this story. Many of them told us that campaigns like this were the reason they joined the Corps, so we felt a huge amount of responsibility to get it right and to show how every role in the Royal Marines is vital.”
