WHEN FEAR GOES VIRAL
NAT GEO TASKED US WITH CREATING A CONCEPTUAL TEASER AND PROMO PACKAGE FOR THE HOT ZONE, A NEW LIMITED SERIES INSPIRED BY TRUE EVENTS.
BASED ON RICHARD PRESTON’S INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER, THIS 6-PART “POPCORN THRILLER” RECOUNTS THE TERRIFYING STORY OF THE ORIGINS OF THE EBOLA VIRUS AND ITS ARRIVAL ON U.S. SOIL IN 1989.
A VIRAL THREAD
THE EXTERIOR STRUCTURE OF THE EBOLA VIRUS IS A WORM-LIKE FILAMENT LESS THAN A MILLIONTH OF A METER LONG — 100 MILLION VIRUSES CAN FIT ON THE HEAD OF A PIN. WHEN A VIROLOGIST LOOKS INTO THE MICROSCOPE AND SEES THESE UNMISTAKABLE STRUCTURES OF THE FILOVIRUS, SHE GETS THAT FEELING: OH, SHIT. WHAT NOW?
THE SEEMINGLY INNOCUOUS THREADS OF THE EBOLA VIRUS ARE EMINENTLY DANGEROUS AND CONTINUOUSLY EVOLVING. AS THEY CONSUME HOST CELLS, THEY GROW AND CREEP THEIR WAY THROUGH THEIR ENVIRONMENT, SPREADING FEAR AND, ULTIMATELY, DEATH.
THESE TINY VIRAL THREADS THAT CONNECT REMOTE AFRICAN VILLAGES AND THE HEART OF WESTERN CIVILIZATION LIVE AT THE CENTER OF THE HOT ZONE, SO WE MADE THEM THE SERIES’ CORE VISUAL MOTIF.
INSPIRED BY HUMAN ANATOMY AND THE NATURAL WORLD, AS WELL AS THE SHAPE OF THE VIRUS ITSELF, THE TENDRILS ARE IN SOME MOMENTS VERY SIMPLE AND IN OTHERS EXTREMELY COMPLEX. INTERMITTENTLY BEAUTIFUL BUT UNDENIABLY SINISTER, OUR VIRAL THREADS ARE PRESENT IN SOME FORM THROUGHOUT ALL PROMO MATERIAL.
