First Cruise Ship at Horizon Terminal: Filming Southampton's Historic MSC Virtuosa Call
The exclusive media team behind the aerial film of MSC Virtuosa - the first cruise ship to call at Southampton's new £55m Horizon Cruise Terminal.
Pre-Production
Briefed by Hayley Griffith on the PR objectives and key shots. Coordinated site access, security clearance and airspace planning for a live, operational port environment. Completed risk assessments and method statements (RAMS) and confirmed flight windows around MSC Virtuosa's arrival and passenger embarkation, working as the sole accredited media crew on-site.
Production
Captured aerial film and photography of MSC Virtuosa - the first cruise ship to call at the terminal - berthed at the Horizon Cruise Terminal, plus ground-level coverage of the terminal and arriving passengers. Flew close to the vessel and terminal infrastructure under CAA permissions while keeping clear of live operations and passenger flow, prioritising the hero angles that conveyed the scale of the ship and facility.
Post-Production
Edited and graded on the same day to meet a live press cycle, delivering a finished launch edit alongside a set of B-roll selects for the wider PR and media team to use across press and social channels.
The Horizon Cruise Terminal marked a landmark moment for UK cruise, and MSC Virtuosa's arrival was its defining image: the first cruise ship ever to call at the new terminal. As Europe's leading cruise turn-around port, Southampton needed launch coverage that matched the scale and ambition of the new facility - and the trust to operate safely inside a live, secured port environment on one of its biggest days.
We were brought in to deliver aerial and ground content that could be used immediately across press, PR and ABP's own channels, including:
- Aerial film and photography of MSC Virtuosa - the first ship to call - berthed at the new terminal
- Ground-level coverage of the terminal exterior and the first passengers arriving
- A same-day edit ready for press and social distribution
- B-roll selects supplied to the wider PR and media team
Operating as the sole accredited media crew on-site placed a premium on planning, airspace coordination and discretion. Our CAA Operational Authorisation (PDRA01) and faultless safety record allowed us to fly close to the vessel and terminal infrastructure within a controlled port setting - capturing the angles that told the story without disrupting live operations or passenger flow.
The result was a fast, clean set of deliverables that helped ABP and MSC Cruises mark the milestone in real time, supporting national and trade press coverage of the terminal's opening.
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