Don’t Panic’s inventive films for children’s causes has added another film that packs a mighty punch. This one, World of our Own, directed by dom&nic (Dominic Hawley and Nic Goffey) is for UK housing and homeless charity, Shelter’s Christmas campaign.

What the audience sees first is endearing daddy and daughter play seen through the imagination of a little girl, Mia. They are space travellers in an outer-space world, with Santa Claus and his reindeer flying past and an alien creature to play with. But the film takes a sinister turn when Mia’s imagination is stripped away. The pair are living in squalid temporary accommodation with another couple.

More than 150,000 children in England are currently homeless and living in temporary accommodation, an increase of 20,000 since last year and the highest number recorded in the country, according to the UK Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government’s latest figures.

To build the campaign, Don’t Panic and Shelter collected information provided by people who have lived in temporary accommodation, who described unpleasant physical conditions as well as emotional stresses. It was also created with a number of donated resources. The planet scenes were shot at the Mars Volume studio in Ruislip, on a state-of-art stage with a virtual production screen that allowed the alien world to be created completely in camera. The special effects, including the alien octopus, Father Christmas and the rocket were added by post-production house, Rascal. The film’s score is a track recorded in the 1970s by singer, Sibylle Baier, that was not released until her sone discovered the recording in 2006.

Rick Dodds, creative partner at Don’t Panic London, commented, “The thing that struck me the most when I met parents who lived in temporary accommodation with their children, was how hard they had to work to protect them from the harsh reality of everyday living. We heard some incredibly moving stories, and we felt our job was to portray the love and hard work a parent puts in to keep them safe. We want the public to really cherish the relationship between the father and daughter and to see a little bit of their own relationship in the one that’s portrayed on screen. I don’t think there’s a parent on the planet who won’t be moved by the look on Dad’s face at the end of the film.”