Some experiences resist explanation.
They are better understood through atmosphere, through feeling, through the subtle textures that emerge between people when enough space has been created to slow down and arrive.
This film emerged from that place.
Created in collaboration with Jack Thompson-Roylance and the team at Deadbeat Studios, the project was never intended to function as a traditional brand film or campaign. From the beginning, the intention was to create something more intimate and experiential — a glimpse into the world and feeling of ĀKĀŚA.
We gathered with close friends and collaborators from our wider community at Wasing Estate, the home of Medicine Festival, to share ceremonial cacao around the fire as the sun slowly set.
There was no rigid script.
Instead, the evening unfolded naturally through conversation, music, movement, food, laughter, silence, and presence.
Our friend Valentina, a firekeeper, built and tended the fire that became the centre point of the gathering throughout the evening. Peter “Chippy” Grant, who we previously collaborated with to develop cacao recipes for ĀKĀŚA, also joined us around the fire.
The gathering was shaped by the presence of many friends and practitioners from the wider ĀKĀŚA community — including Simon, Dany, Mariya, Jacob, Mikey, Carina, whose voice became woven into the soundtrack, Aya, Eduardo, Maryemma, Sid and Andrea, alongside many others who came simply to share space, contribute, and gather together around the fire.
Together, we shared intentions, drank cacao, gathered around food and fire, danced, and allowed the evening to unfold in its own rhythm.
What emerged was not performance, but participation.
A living atmosphere.
One of the most meaningful aspects of the project was the deeply collaborative nature of its creation. The visual language of the film developed through ongoing creative exchange between the ĀKĀŚA team and Jack alongside the Deadbeat Studios crew — shaping together how the world should feel rather than simply how it should look.
Texture, movement, light, grain, pacing, and sound all became important.
We were interested in creating something cinematic yet grounded. Something intimate without becoming overly polished or performative.
The soundtrack for the film was composed by ĀKĀŚA co-founder Max, whose music became a central emotional thread running through the piece. Carina’s voice, woven subtly into the soundscape, added another layer of intimacy and atmosphere to the film. Together, the score helped shape the rhythm of the experience itself — reflective of the wider intention behind ĀKĀŚA: creating spaces that invite people back into presence, connection, and embodied experience.
At its heart, the film is less about cacao itself and more about what cacao can support.
Gathering.
Conversation.
Slowness.
Listening.
Friendship.
Ritual.
The remembering that can happen when people come together with intention.
In a world increasingly shaped by speed, distraction, and disconnection, we wanted to create something that felt human.
Not a statement.
Not a performance.
Simply an offering.
We’re deeply grateful to everyone who shared the space with us, and to Jack Thompson-Roylance and Deadbeat Studios for helping bring this world to life with such care, sensitivity, and artistry.