The Story Collective - Film Sound Stage Complex

Transforming history into performance—two world-class sound stages within the iconic Old Stag Brewery in southwest London.

This ambitious project reimagined a historic industrial site into a modern production hub, featuring two high-performance sound stages and their supporting facilities. But breathing new life into this heritage space came with serious challenges.

Chief among them was the need to deliver exceptional acoustic isolation in a location directly beneath the Heathrow flight path. Our solution: a robust dual-shell system with inner and outer isolation walls soaring to 14 metres, engineered to block out the roar of overhead aircraft. Achieving the minimum internal height—essential for sound stage functionality—was another hurdle, tackled within the strict spatial constraints of the existing structure.

We also had to navigate complex building control requirements, including fire strategy compliance and the prevention of fire spread within wall and ceiling cavities—without compromising the acoustic integrity of the design.

Internally, the stages were fully treated with high-performance acoustic solutions. Aesthetic finishes were intentionally left bare, reflecting a value engineering decision by the client—allowing future flexibility while maintaining top-tier functionality.