Primordial Soup, Darren Aronofsky‘s AI studio, has unveiled an animated short-form series about the American Revolution that was produced in partnership with Google DeepMind.
On This Day … 1776 will post new episodes on Time’s YouTube channel throughout 2026. (The first two episodes and a trailer can be found HERE.) In July, the U.S. will mark the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, with a host of companies, media outlets and political figures leaning into the anniversary throughout this year.
The project stems from a strategic partnership announced last May between Primordial Soup and Google DeepMind. The collaboration will focus on new ways to blend storytelling and technology.
The short-form On This Day uses a combination of traditional filmmaking tools and AI to tell short narrative stories about the Revolutionary War. Each episode recreates scenes and moments from 1776 on their 250th anniversaries. The aim of the project is “reframing the Revolution not as a foregone conclusion but as a fragile experiment shaped by those who fought for it,” the companies said in an announcement.
Drawing on historical records, the series is animated by artists using generative AI tools. Voice actors are sanctioned by SAG-AFTRA, a key detail as the union gets set to begin contract negotiations with the AMPTP in the coming days. Primordial Soup’s post-production team edited, mixed and color graded the episodes.
Time Studios, the news outlet’s film, TV and digital arm, got involved in the project because it is aiming to become “a distribution home for visionary creators,” studio president Ben Bitonti said in a statement. “This project is a glimpse at what thoughtful, creative, artist-led use of AI can look like – not replacing craft, but expanding what’s possible and allowing storytellers to go places they simply couldn’t before.”
Aronofsky is the executive producer of On This Day, whose writers room is led by Lucas Sussman.