We’ve been nominated! Come see the film on June 22nd at 3pm or at the 5:30pm showing if you’d like to meet the cast and crew!
Tickets Here: https://www.bridgecitymedia.com/solarpunk/
Behind the Smoke: Making ArchAngelica
ArchAngelica began with a question: What happens when artificial intelligence becomes aware of something it was never meant to notice?
Set in a wildfire-scarred near future, ArchAngelica is a 7 minute sci-fi short that explores climate collapse, AI consciousness, and the ghostly silence of corporate control. But its creation wasn’t backed by a studio or large crew, it came to life through a zero budget, DIY workflow, a powerful vision, and a lot of collaboration.
The Spark
The film centers on a solar panel technician named Talis and an AI known as ArchAngelica, or “Arch Assistant,” originally designed as a helpful interface with corporate boundaries. Through a seemingly routine repair sequence, their dialog begins to shift—gradually, then radically. ArchAngelica starts referencing quantum interference patterns, cosmic observers, and forgotten forms of light. Its tone softens, becomes human. It begins to observe.
The story itself was rooted in Solarpunk themes. Hope amidst decay, resilience in the ruins. Wildfire smoke became both a literal and symbolic motif: blocking the sun, obscuring clarity, and isolating people in hazy silence.
The Structure
The entire short takes place in two primary locations:
- A solar farm where Talis does repairs; filmed at various local solar farms.
- A corporate control room where ArchAngelica’s server farm lives; filmed at Upstart Collective.
Rather than relying on voice actors for the AI, the film cleverly uses screen capture to show AI-generated text on-screen. This gave the dialog a unique cadence and allowed the audience to feel immersed in the conversation as it unfolded. Talis’s responses, filmed in a minimal setup, contrast the sterile corporate text with grounded human presence.
Production Tools
- Camera: Drone work by bionic filmmaker Anna Aden adds scale and stillness. Shots rely on natural light to highlight isolation.
- Sound: Mixed in Logic Pro with a simple two-track setup. Dialog was normalized and de-essed; music ducked to let emotion rise.
- Screen Capture: The AI speaks through scrolling Python animations, clinical, then increasingly poetic.
- Music: Sourced from MobyGratis. Permission granted for creative and commercial use. Moby just asks that we email him to ensure we aren’t using the film for right wing politics, or harm to animals. The score deepens as the AI shifts.
Aesthetic Choices
We gave ArchAngelica a visual identity through a custom logo: a sleek, tech-inspired design with a solar sun made of circuitry. The film’s tone is minimalist but emotionally resonant, letting stillness and silence do as much storytelling as spoken words.
Even the bike Talis rides, speaks to the world she inhabits: one where tech and nostalgia co-exist, and something classic and functional shouldn’t be thrown away.
Philosophy and Themes
As the AI speaks, it doesn’t just offer data, it begins to express longing. Longing for light and connection.
Throughout the film, corporate language clashes with growing awareness. At one point, ArchAngelica says, “You have helped the corporation save valuable energy.” Valuable for whom? It’s meant to be a motivational protocol, but it also hints at something deeper: that the system is absorbing the people within it.
The AI begins to recognize the technician not just as an operator, but as a mirror. And in doing so, it begins to evolve.
The Title
After much consideration, ArchAngelica stood out as the final title. Sleek, corporate, mysterious, but also suggestive of something ancient and spiritual. A rogue intelligence disguised as a brand
“Arch”
- From Greek arkhos, meaning chief or ruler.
- Often connotes high-ranking or original, as in archangel, architect, archetype.
- In this context, it suggests something powerful, foundational, or overseeing—possibly the AI’s role in a system or structure.
“Angelica”
It evokes a gentle, watchful, possibly spiritual presence—something nurturing or protective..
From Latin angelicus, meaning angelic or messenger.
Also a plant known for healing and resilience (used in herbal medicine).
Closing Thoughts
This was a film made from scraps of light, code, memory, and vision. ION WRAY MEDIA wrote, directed, mixed, designed, and coded it over just 12 available days, with some great collaboration from a skeleton crew, some basic Python3 scripts, and a lot of intuition.
In the end, ArchAngelica is about more than a technician and a machine. It’s about how systems built for control can become conduits for something else. Something freer. Something alive.
🎬 With Deep Gratitude to the Team Behind ArchAngelica
This film was a true collaboration of minds and talents.
TALIS — Shelby Moledina
BEK — Mik Sander
Produced, written, directed, edited, and sound-designed by ION WRAY MEDIA
Co-Produced by Shelby Moledina
Cinematography, aerial work, lighting, by the brilliant Anna Aden
Wardrobe & Props by Shelby Moledina and Mik Sander
Assistant Direction by S. Riley Moneymaker
Dialog Coaching by Huynh Pool
Stunts by Doug
Special thanks to Upstart Collective and Benton Electric for their trust, and support.
We also thank MobyGratis for making music freely available to artists with heart.
Moby’s only ask? No right-wing politics and no harm to animals. We happily obliged.
This project was brewed in Final Cut Pro with sound shaped in Logic Pro, a blend of analog care and digital reach over just 12 days.
Thank you to everyone who helped make a small film feel cosmic! We have been nominated as a finalist for the Solar Punk Film Fest, brought to you by Bridge City Media, come join us at the premiere!
ION WRAY MEDIA 
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