Small Bang

What Small Bang does

Small Bang is a Paris-based interactive creation studio founded in 2012 by Pierre Cattan, operating with approximately 5 core employees and a broader network of project-based collaborators (roughly 150 contributors engaged on its largest project, Pays Cathare / Castrum). The studio designs and produces multi-platform digital experiences that fuse physical and digital worlds, spanning mobile applications, video games, augmented-reality and geolocated storytelling, virtual and mixed-reality installations, transmedia documentaries, and live performances. Its product portfolio of more than 20 projects since founding includes Phallaina (the world's first "bande défilée" scrolling graphic novel, 2016 Peabody Award), Birdlab (a participatory-science app transmitting observational data to Vigie-Nature and AgroParisTech since 2015), Cinemacity (a geolocated cinema-walk app for Paris, Prix Italia 2013), Pays Cathare (a tourism guide covering 20 heritage sites in the Aude department), Castrum (a historical video game), J'apprends (a literacy application for non-literate adults, co-produced with Langues Plurielles), Fugue VR (a VR and mixed-reality dance experience with Maison de la Danse and the Biennale de la Danse de Lyon, 2018), Morphosis, Carnaval Marbles (Steam demo launched January 2026), and the daily Mediapart streaming programs Mediapart Live and À l'air libre.

The studio's core technology combines game engines (Unity, Godot) with proprietary narrative architectures—notably the scrolling graphic novel format, geolocated 360° "Magic Monocle" augmented-reality image spheres, and collective VR experiences for multiple participants—and extends across film production, sound design, transmedia production pipelines, and event production. Notable technical outputs include Phallaina's 1600-tablet-screen digital format paired with a 115-metre physical fresco with geolocated sound, Carnaval Marbles' combinatorial roguelike-and-billiards mechanics built in Godot with 13 language localizations, and Pays Cathare's 210 thematic info sheets with 10 interactive frescoes.

Small Bang does not monetize through direct consumer pricing: most applications and cultural productions are free downloads or free live experiences. Revenue is generated through public funding, co-production grants, and institutional commissions from French public-sector and cultural buyers (CNC, Région Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, Ministère de la Culture / DGCA, Département de l'Aude, Fondation BNP Paribas, Radio France), and through production-services contracts with broadcasters and newsrooms (Mediapart, Arte, France Télévisions). Carnaval Marbles represents the studio's first direct-to-consumer commercial gaming product via Steam.

Name

Small Bang

Legal name

Small Bang

Website

https://smallbang.fr

Company type

Private

Founded year

2012

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Small Bang is a Paris-based interactive creation studio founded in 2012 that designs multi-platform digital experiences—mobile apps, video games, VR/MR installations, and live events—for French public institutions, cultural bodies, and consumers, monetizing through institutional commissions and co-production grants.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Interactive Digital Experiences

NAICS

Motion Picture and Sound Recording Industries (512), Software Publishers (5132), Independent Artists, Writers, and Performers (71151)

SIC

Services-Motion Picture & Video Tape Production (7812), Services-Computer Programming Services (7371), Services-Allied To Motion Picture Production (7819)

akta.pro primary industry

Serious Games & Simulation Studios (Training, Defense, Enterprise) (MPAFAAAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Educational Games & Kids/Families Game Studios (MPAFAAAI), Short-Form Animation (Shorts, Web Series) (MPADACAI), Live-Action Short-Form Production (Short Films, Web Series) (MPADABAE)

Keywords

• Interactive storytelling
• Transmedia production
• Augmented reality apps
• Cultural heritage apps
• Participatory science games

Headquarters

HQ city

Paris

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Public Funding, Grants & Institutional Commissions: Many of Small Bang's projects are commissioned or co-produced with public institutions: CNC (Centre National du Cinéma), Région Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, Ministère de la Culture / DGCA, Département de l'Aude, Fondation BNP Paribas, and Radio France. Revenue comes in the form of production grants, co-production financing, and institutional commissions rather than direct product sales.
2. Free Applications with Institutional Sponsorship: Most applications (Birdlab, Cinemacity, Pays Cathare/Castrum, J'apprends, Morphosis, Carnaval Marbles demo) are free to download. Revenue is generated through the production budget (commissioned work) rather than direct consumer payments.
3. Live Events & Spectacle Production: Ecolilalala (live drawing recital at Radio France Auditorium) and Fugue VR (venue-based VR experience at Biennale de la Danse) are experienced in person at cultural venues and festivals. Revenue derives from co-production fees and venue/grant financing for the live event production.
4. Video Game Sales (Steam): Carnaval Marbles is available as a free demo on Steam, with the full game planned for release (January 2026). This follows a free-to-play or demo-then-purchase model.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Small Bang is a Paris-based interactive creation studio founded in 2012 by Pierre Cattan that designs and produces multi-platform digital experiences combining film, mobile apps, VR/MR, video games, and live events. The studio develops free mobile applications (Birdlab, Cinemacity, Pays Cathare/Castrum, J'apprends), narrative digital publications (Phallaina scrolling graphic novel), VR dance experiences (Fugue VR), video games (Carnaval Marbles, Les Saisons: Morphosis), and commissioned documentary series and live productions (Chimères, Minidocs, Écolilalala, Mediapart Live). Projects are predominantly commissioned and co-produced with French public institutions, broadcasters, and cultural bodies.

Product overview

Small Bang is a Paris-based interactive creation studio founded in 2012 by Pierre Cattan that designs and produces multi-platform experiences connecting physical and digital worlds. The portfolio includes video games (Carnaval Marbles, Castrum), digital publications (Phallaina scrolling graphic novel, J'appris literacy app), participatory science applications (Birdlab), cultural tourism guides (Pays Cathare with Castrum game), VR experiences (FugueVR), documentary games (Les Saisons: Morphosis), documentary web series (Minidocs, Chimères), streaming programs (Mediapart Live, À l'air libre), video installations (Pranatic), and live events (LARP, Écolilalala). The studio combines fiction and non-fiction storytelling with participatory and collaborative approaches across mobile, web, VR, and live performance formats.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Birdlab: Participative science game for studying bird behavior on bird feeders during winter
• J'apprends
• Phallaina
• Cinemacity
• Carnaval Marbles
• Castrum
• Fugue VR
• Minidocs
• Pays Cathare

Products and services

• Carnaval Marbles Tactical roguelike video game fusing systemic roguelike mechanics with French billiards in a dark fantasy carnival world. Features Talismans, Marble Bonuses, and Runes for building synergies. Free demo on Steam with full game planned.
• Phallaina First scrolling graphic novel (bande défilée) by Marietta Ren, a hybrid digital narrative combining a tablet/smartphone graphic novel with parallax effects and a 115-metre physical fresco installation featuring geolocated sound design.
• Birdlab Participatory science mobile app where users record arrivals and departures of birds on real bird feeders during 5-minute sessions, transmitting data to Vigie-Nature and AgroParisTech researchers for ecological studies of 24 common bird species.
• Cinemacity Geolocated cinema experience app showing film excerpts at the exact Paris locations where they were filmed. Free on iOS and Android in French, English, and German, including original fiction walks.
• Pays Cathare Cultural tourism travel guide application for the Cathar Country region in Aude, France, with interactive map, 20 geolocated heritage sites, augmented reality 'magic monocles', 210 thematic info sheets, and 10 interactive educational frescoes.
• Castrum Historical video game where players develop a fortified village (castrum) as a Cathar lord, with history mode and geolocated monument mode. Features 54 collectible items and nearly 200 craftable combinations across 20 monuments.
• Fugue VR Diptych combining a VR film and mixed reality experience re-creating Yoann Bourgeois's 'Fugue Trampoline' dance piece on Philip Glass music, designed for 10 participants with Gear VR headsets and 2 dancer-mediators.
• Les Saisons: Morphosis Documentary game companion to Jacques Perrin and Jacques Cluzaud's film 'Les Saisons', featuring 18 interactive episodes exploring landscape evolution from the ice age in a hybrid of video game, enhanced book, and animation series.
• J'apprends Free French language learning application for non-literate adults who cannot read or write, using video game mechanics, in-context learning, mini-games, audio-visual dictionary, and recording/playback features. Co-produced with Langues Plurielles.
• Chimères Documentary series of capsules exploring hybrid artistic creation at the intersection of performing arts and creative technologies, commissioned by the Ministère de la Culture / DGCA with four French cultural venues.
• Mediapart Live Live streaming news program produced for Mediapart's editorial newsroom, broadcast daily on YouTube, Dailymotion, Facebook, and Mediapart.fr featuring news, investigations, debates, and reportages.
• À l'air libre Daily news talk show by Mediapart (approximately 30 minutes per episode) produced by Small Bang during the COVID-19 pandemic, featuring panel discussions, testimony segments, and investigative content.

Quantifiable outcome

• Phallaina received Peabody Awards recognition — one of the most prestigious awards in broadcast and digital media
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Feature7 records

Partnerships

19 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Summoning SystemscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Co-producer of Carnaval Marbles alongside Small Bang. Summoning Systems co-developed the roguelike billiards game with Small Bang, contributing to game design and development. The game is co-produced and co-copyrighted by both studios.
• Ministère de la Culture / DGCA (Direction Générale de la Création Artistique)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022Commissioning body for the Chimères program of documentary capsules on hybrid artistic creation. The DGCA co-funded the production of capsules documenting artistic projects at the intersection of performing arts and creative technologies, produced by Small Bang at the request of four French cultural venues.
• Lieu Unique (Nantes), TNG (Lyon), CND (Pantin), Espace des Arts (Chalon-sur-Saône)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022Co-holders of the Chimères program. These four French cultural venues collectively commissioned the Chimères documentary capsule series from Small Bang, exploring hybrid artistic creation at the intersection of performing arts and creative technologies. Nicolas Rosette of Lieu Unique served as delegated producer.
• Langues PluriellescoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020Co-producer of J'apprends, the French-learning app for non-literate adults. Langues Plurielles provides the pedagogical method and trainer expertise, while Small Bang handles digital production. Langues Plurielles also offers trainer training courses using the application.
• Michel ReilhaccoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020Michel Reilhac conceived and directed multiple Small Bang projects including the LARP experience (2012) and Pranatic (2012), and co-directed Fugue VR (2018). He initiated the 48-hour confinement experience at La Gaîté Lyrique that preceded Pranatic.
• Radio FrancecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019Venue and co-production partner for Ecolilalala, a live drawing recital performed at Radio France's Auditorium with the Orchestre National de France. Radio France's educational and cultural programming department (led by Marie Faucher) conceived and co-produced the project with Small Bang handling the animation film and live event production.
• Maison de la Danse (Lyon)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2018Initiating partner and co-producer of Fugue VR, the VR and mixed reality dance experience based on Yoann Bourgeois's 'Fugue Trampoline'. Maison de la Danse initiated the project and co-produced it with Small Bang, the Biennale de la Danse de Lyon, and CCN2 – Centre Chorégraphique National de Grenoble.
• Biennale de la Danse de LyoncoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2018Co-producer of Fugue VR. The Biennale de la Danse de Lyon 2018 served as a key co-production partner and premiere venue for the VR dance experience.
• CCN2 – Centre Chorégraphique National de GrenoblecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2018Co-producer of Fugue VR alongside Small Bang, Maison de la Danse, and Biennale de la Danse de Lyon. CCN2 is the home base of choreographer Yoann Bourgeois.
• Département de l'AudecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2018Primary commissioning partner for the Pays Cathare travel guide application and the Castrum video game. The Département de l'Aude funded the development of both products to promote tourism and cultural heritage of the Aude region. Over 150 people contributed directly from within the Aude department.
• Yoann Bourgeois and Michel ReilhaccoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2018Yoann Bourgeois (choreographer and dancer) and Michel Reilhac (film director) are the creative originators of Fugue VR. Bourgeois created the 'Fugue Trampoline' performance that was re-created in VR; Reilhac directed the VR film and conceived the mixed reality experience. Both collaborated closely with Small Bang as producer.
• France TélévisionscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2016Co-producer of Phallaina, the first scrolling graphic novel by Marietta Ren. France Télévisions co-published the project alongside Small Bang as part of its digital innovation strategy.
• Marietta RencoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2016Author, director, and illustrator of Phallaina. Small Bang served as producer alongside France Télévisions in bringing this hybrid narrative format to digital and physical audiences.
• Vigie-Nature / Muséum national d'Histoire naturellecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2015Scientific research partner for Birdlab. Vigie-Nature and its network (including the Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle) receive standardized citizen science data on bird feeder behavior collected by Birdlab users, contributing to long-term ecological monitoring.
• AgroParisTechcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2015Research partner for Birdlab alongside Vigie-Nature. AgroParisTech scientists analyze the citizen science data generated by Birdlab users to study bird behavior in winter.
• Orange and Lexis NumériquecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2012Co-producers of the Minidocs documentary series exploring the Alt-Minds video game universe. Small Bang produced the 10-episode documentary series for Dailymotion (November 2012 – January 2013) in a transmedia collaboration with Orange and Lexis Numérique.
• MediapartcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2012Since January 2012, Small Bang has been embedded in Mediapart's editorial newsroom, producing live streaming programs (MediapartLive, later À l'air libre) on YouTube, Dailymotion, and Facebook. In September 2016, Small Bang redesigned the program's graphic identity and technical control room. Since 2020, Small Bang handles production execution for the daily À l'air libre program.
• ArtecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2012Co-producer of multiple Small Bang projects including the LARP experience (2012), Chat mini-series (2013), and Là-bas (2014). Arte provides co-production financing and broadcast/exhibition platform for these projects.
• La Gaîté LyriqueminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2012Venue and exhibition partner for Pranatic, a poetic triptych film installation that closed the '2062, Aller-Retour vers le Futur' exhibition at La Gaîté Lyrique in March 2012. The venue organized the preceding 48-hour 'Sous-marin' confinement experience that Pranatic concluded.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Innerspace VR: French VR production studio focused on location-based cultural and entertainment VR experiences. Direct overlap with Small Bang's VR/MR institutional work, including venue-based distribution models.
• Backlight Studio: Independent studio producing narrative, transmedia, and immersive content for cultural and institutional clients. Direct overlap with Small Bang's commissioning-driven transmedia model.
• Atelier Daruma: French VR and immersive content studio producing location-based and headset-based experiences for cultural institutions. Closely overlaps with Small Bang's Fugue VR-style institutional VR work.
• Cosmografik: French indie studio producing narrative-driven, art-leaning games and transmedia experiences (e.g., Type:Rider, A Normal Lost Phone). Similar in combining cultural themes with interactive digital products at small studio scale.
• Novelab: Paris-based interactive studio producing VR, AR, and transmedia experiences with institutional partners. Most directly comparable to Small Bang in format mix, French institutional positioning, and award-winning creative ambition.

Others

• ARTE: Franco-German public broadcaster with a strong track record of co-producing experimental interactive and documentary content. Comparable as a recurring commissioning partner and structural peer shaping the market Small Bang operates in, rather than a direct competitor.
• France Télévisions Nouvelles Écritures: Digital innovation arm of France Télévisions that funds and co-produces experimental narrative projects. Functions as a commissioning counterpart to Small Bang rather than a competitor — relevant as a structural peer in the French public-broadcaster creative ecosystem.

Broad incumbents

• Ubisoft: French-headquartered global game publisher. Relevant as the dominant French gaming incumbent, with adjacent creative and narrative franchises (Assassin's Creed, Beyond Good & Evil) that frame the French transmedia creative ecosystem.
• Asobo Studio: French game studio behind A Plague Tale and the Microsoft Flight Simulator reboot. Comparable as a French narrative-led game developer, but operates at much larger scale and on global AAA/IP licenses.
• DON'T NOD (formerly DONTNOD Entertainment): French narrative-driven game studio behind Life is Strange and Tell Me Why. Comparable in the French narrative-game DNA and creative ambition, but at significantly larger scale and broader commercial reach.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/small-bang

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Small Bang