• by Colin Kirkland , December 12, 2024

Snapchat and Daft Punk are continuing their collaborative history via an AR experience tied to the remastered release of the famed French electronic music duo's 2003 film “Interstella 5555,” which is set to run in theaters across the globe for just one day, Friday the 12th.

“Interstella 5555: The 5tory of the 5ecret 5tar 5ystem” was written by Daft Punk’s Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo, as well as creative director Cédric Hervet, directed by Kazuhisa Takenouchi and supervised by the late Leiji Matsumoto, an iconic manga artist.

The hour-long film, which tells the story of the abduction of an alien music band by an evil human, was cut into music videos to accompany Daft Punk's 2001 album “Discovery” and is rare to see in its original form in theaters.

For the film's one-night-only re-release, Snapchat has developed a special AR Lens that uses generative AI to turn Snapchatters into the iconic characters from the film as drawn by its creator, Leiji Matsumoto, and is set to the original Daft Punk song “Veridis Quo.”

The Lens will be available via QR code at select cinemas, as well as globally on the social media app. Filmgoers can scan the code during the screening, or search for Daft Punk's official account on Snapchat.

In addition to the Lens, Snapchat has partnered with creators to maximize reach for the film.

Ahead of the release, a group of creators will reveal the story behind the musical and artistic project, using the “Interstella 5555” Lens to engage their audiences through Snap’s Stories and Spotlight features.

In an attempt to attract new and existing fans of the band and film, content created by influencers will also be sponsored on the app through targeted campaigns, enhancing their visibility in key markets such as the U.S., France, and the U.K., Snap says.

The Lens campaign builds off of previous launches between Snapchat and Daft Punk.

In 2023, Snapchat's Paris-based AR Studio teamed up with the duo's creative team to celebrate the special release of the 10th anniversary edition of “Random Access Memories” with a series of AR launches, highlighting a never-before-seen crystal helmet, an unreleased track, and geolocated AR experiences.