A charity rebuilt a 1990s video shop and the film is darkly brilliant

Grassroots movement Smartphone Free Childhood has released a 60-second film that recreates a real 1990s video shop, reimagined for the smartphone and social media era.

The idea starts in nostalgia. Friday nights browsing the aisles, arguing over what to watch, and sneaking a glance at the shelves you knew you were too young for. Back then, some content was clearly off limits to children and everyone accepted it.

Today a child carries a device with access to more content than every video shop ever combined, and it is algorithms designed in Silicon Valley, not parents, deciding what comes next.

The film asks a simple question: when did all of this become normal?

To make the point, an empty shop in Slough was transformed for one day into a fully functioning 1990s video store.

It was built by real people rather than AI, with production designers, set decorators, stylists and dozens of other specialists recreating the shelves, VHS boxes, posters and tiny background details from scratch.

Hundreds of hours of work sit behind those 60 seconds.

The film was produced pro bono by production company Arts & Sciences, directed by David Dearlove, with Kwok Yau producing, James Bland as managing director and Charlie Orr as executive producer.

Editing came from Stitch, post-production from Black Kite, sound from 750mph and music from Twenty Below Music.

It plays in cinemas across the UK over the coming weeks.