I first discovered 'Atlantium' through a short segment on a variety-style news program. Its founder, Emperor George Cruickshank, had declared his rural property—four hours outside Sydney—an independent empire, complete with its own flag, currency, stamps, and bureaucratic structure, all separate from Australia. But it wasn’t just the absurdity that intrigued me. It was why he did it—his belief in symbolic protest, his love of ceremony, and his tongue-in-cheek approach to authority. It was quirky, yes, but also strangely uplifting. The kind of offbeat, human story I believe we need more of. So I made a film. Funded and produced independently, this was a passion project—driven by curiosity, not a brief. I chose to tell George’s story with the same reverence and grandeur that he applied to his empire: a cinematic tone full of pomp and gravitas, designed to mirror the playful seriousness of his world. The film was selected as a Vimeo Staff Pick and later featured by Slate, NOWNESS, Monster Children, The Sydney Morning Herald, and the National Geographic Channel, where it went on to receive over 400,000 views.