A Web Documentary Agency: Upian

10 July 2025 | 10 July 2025 | 2 min |

In this article :

Une équipe hybride
Une activité ancrée dans les sujets de société
Vers une approche toujours plus documentaire et créative

Founded in 1998 in Paris, Upian is a digital production agency that quickly established itself as a leading name in the field of web documentaries. Its unique positioning lies at the crossroads of journalism, interactive design, and digital storytelling. Upian primarily serves media outlets, institutions, and audiovisual producers seeking innovative narrative formats for the web.

The agency gained recognition through landmark projects such as Génération Quoi ? (France Télévisions) and Do Not Track, an interactive documentary series co-produced with Arte and the National Film Board of Canada (ONF). These often award-winning productions showcase a strong narrative commitment and expert mastery of digital tools.

A Hybrid Team

Upian brings together around forty collaborators with diverse profiles: developers, UX/UI designers, journalists, project managers, motion designers… This range of expertise enables the agency to create projects that are both editorially solid and technically robust. The agency covers the entire value chain: editorial conception, interaction design, front-end and back-end development, hosting, and maintenance.

Over the years, Upian has expanded its scope to include data visualization, civic tech design, and content strategy projects for institutions and NGOs.

A Commitment to Societal Issues

What sets Upian apart is its ability to tackle contemporary issues through engaging digital formats. Whether dealing with topics like online privacy, discrimination, youth, democracy, or migration, the agency crafts interactive narratives that help audiences grasp the stakes involved.

They regularly collaborate with partners such as Médecins Sans Frontières, the Abbé Pierre Foundation, the Montaigne Institute, and Amnesty International. These partnerships result in web platforms, editorial mini-sites, or interactive series designed to have a strong social impact.

Toward an Ever More Documentary and Creative Approach

Today, Upian continues to reinvent itself. The agency goes beyond interactive formats, investing in podcasts, augmented reality, and immersive experiences. Its ability to combine editorial insight with technological innovation makes it a distinctive player in the Parisian creative ecosystem.

At Rétines, we share this passion for meaningful imagery and powerful storytelling. If you collaborate with agencies or develop projects at the intersection of interactivity, design, and visual storytelling, our studio can support you by creating tailor-made visual content adapted to your digital narratives.

Écrit par Jérémy Carlo

Jérémy Carlo is the editorial director at Rétines, where he ensures the consistency and clarity of all content produced by the studio. His role goes beyond writing—he shapes the tone, structures the messages, and upholds a precise, demanding editorial line that stays true to the identity of Rétines. With a background in visual communication and solid experience in content strategy, he bridges the technical world of photography with clear, no-frills writing.

Jérémy works closely with photographers, art directors, and the commercial team to make sure every word published serves the image, the message, and the brand. From blog articles and client presentations to social media posts and internal documents—everything is filtered through his attentive eye. His strength lies in making complex ideas accessible without oversimplifying, and in highlighting the studio’s work without relying on unnecessary superlatives.

Through his writing, Jérémy helps Rétines exist beyond the image—by giving context to projects, emphasizing the thinking behind each shoot, and bringing to light the technical and aesthetic choices that drive each photograph.