Ridley Scott & Kevin Macdonald Reteam for Life in a Day Sequel

Ridley Scott and Kai Hsuing, along with director Kevin Macdonald, are set to create Life in a Day 2020 for YouTube.

Set ten years after the original Life in a Day, the project is encouraging people around the world to film their lives on July 25 to tell the story of a single day on Earth. Footage sourced from the global contributors will be woven together in this documentary sequel, which is slated to premiere at the Sundance Film Festival and on YouTube in 2021.

All footage must be filmed on July 25, though participants will then have until August 2 to upload their content to be considered for the final film. Once submissions close, a 30-person team of reviewers will begin evaluating and translating submitted videos. The film’s principal editors will then undertake the enormous post-production effort, working alongside Macdonald to shape the film’s final narrative out of submitted footage. The documentary is produced by RSA Films in association with Flying Object.

Susanne Daniels, global head of original content for YouTube, said: “Following the success of the 2010 documentary, this is an important moment to revisit this inventive film concept with Ridley and Kevin. This project truly demonstrates the uniqueness of YouTube by showcasing the power of the human experience told through the eyes and cameras of individuals around the world.”

Kevin Macdonald said: “Making the first Life in a Day was one of the most joyful and eye-opening experiences of my life. Contributors were generous enough to share often quite intimate moments from their lives as part of a huge, life-affirming, filmmaking experiment. I am thrilled, ten years later, that we are making Life in a Day 2020. In that time, how have we changed? How has our relationship to filming ourselves changed? And at this extraordinary turning point in history what are we hoping for in our future?”

Tabitha Jackson, director of the Sundance Film Festival, added: “We’re thrilled to be collaborating with YouTube again, a decade after Life in a Day premiered and captivated audiences at our festival. Given the extraordinary current moment, I think it’s the perfect time to premiere this for a new edition of a work that so powerfully demonstrates the power of cinematic storytelling to reveal and celebrate our shared humanity.”