Marco Polo

Archipelago has provided the special effects for both seasons of the Netflix blockbuster show ‘Marco Polo’, working in Malaysia and Kazakhstan.

The show uses a lot of atmospheric effects like wind, rain, snow and smoke as well as some set-piece effects like the 3 fully working trebuchets we built for season 1 or the explosion and big fires for the big battle in season 2.

The trebuchets were made from steel and clad with timber but they worked completely by gravity. The pivot point was 6m (20′) from the ground and they were able to throw a 25Kg (50lb) projectile over 300m (1,000′), the counterweight was two and half tons. The noise made by the flaming projectiles was awesome and they were surprisingly accurate!

Have a look at the video of the of the trebuchets to see the smaller test device we built and hear the fabulous sound of the flaming projectiles flying through the air.

All our smoke products are really state of the art and the fluids comply with the latest health and safety guidelines.