In response to an increase in knife violence against young girls by young boys in the United Kingdom, actor Stephen Graham was inspired to create a drama that examines the motivation behind these attacks. Stephen began working with Jack Thorne to write and develop Adolescence, which premiered on Netflix on March 13, 2025. Since its premiere, with a Rotten Tomatoes score of nearly 99%, Adolescence has been the streaming giant’s number-one show, with more than 96.7 million views.

The show is about a 13-year-old boy named Jamie, played by first-time actor Owen Cooper, who is accused of murdering a classmate. The show goes on to examine the motivations that could have led to the alleged attack and the impact it had on Jamie’s schoolmates and his family, including his father, played by Stephen Graham. A lot has been said praising Adolescence for its fantastic writing, powerful performances, and its ability to spark deeper conversations about important social issues. Another aspect of the show that has gained critical attention is the fact that director Philip Barantini filmed each of the four, one-hour-long episodes in one continuous shot.

Meticulously choreographed details went into ensuring that each episode was filmed without a single cut, which added to the intensity of the show. Director of photography Matthew Lewis had to find the right equipment that would allow this filming style to complement the story without being a distraction or feeling like a first-person point-of-view video game. The key to the process was the use of camera equipment from the world’s largest drone manufacturer, DJI.

The specific equipment they used was the DJI Ronin 4D system, a complete suite of filming gear that allowed what Jack Thorne describes as embracing the technicality of complex filming to free constraints on storytelling. As described on DJI’s website: “With DJI Ronin 4D, our most advanced technologies have been integrated into one cutting-edge and comprehensive cinematography solution, which offers groundbreaking flexibility to solo cinematographers and unlimited possibilities for coordinated shooting. This powerful, next-generation cinema camera was designed and built to be the future of filmmaking.”

Using the DJI system, Matthew was able to transition the camera seamlessly from handheld use to a drone for what he described as an almost ethereal feel to the filming and storytelling. With a click of a button, which in no way interferes with the image stability, the camera attaches or detaches from the drone. One of the most powerful scenes in which the drone provided the storytelling framework was in Episode 2, three weeks after Jamie is arrested on suspicion of murder.

The lead detective visits Jamie’s school, where he is faced with the chaos of a typical school environment. As he reapproaches a teacher, asking to once again question a student, that student jumps through a window, and a chase ensues. It is an intense sequence of events that ends with the detective in the parking lot as the students exit the school for the day.

As the emotional events of the last hour dawn on the audience, Matthew seamlessly transitions the camera to the drone. The drone begins to provide a wider view of the students joyfully leaving school, scrolling on their phones, contrasted by one student who is clearly distraught by the events of the past day and weeks. The drone continues to rise above the setting, traveling a short distance to the murder site. As the drone descends, the audience sees Stephen’s character approach a memorial shrine for the victim with a bouquet of flowers in his hand.

The arc of emotions from the writing and acting to the way the sequence was filmed is truly gripping. As viewers, the audience doesn’t get to see just how technically advanced the filming process was. Jack went on to explain that the technicality of choreographing each element of Adolescence, especially for a scenario like Episode 2, is what made the show come together. In particular, he said, the DJI system is what made everything possible. “It was an example of the technical meeting the story,” Jack said of the DJI drone camera solution, “and finding a fusion which is actually better than anything that the story had come up with on its own.”

Drone technology has revolutionized filmmaking, providing unparalleled flexibility and precision, allowing directors to capture scenes in ways that were once impossible. In Adolescence, the seamless integration of the DJI Ronin 4D system elevates the storytelling, blending cutting-edge technology with emotional depth to create a truly immersive viewing experience.

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