# Burning Man: the first drone show drone show – Drone Stories

> The first drone show at Burning Man: Studio DRIFT flew Franchise Freedom above the playa in memory of founder Larry Harvey, for about 70,000 people.

Source: https://dronestories.com/drone-shows/burning-man-first-drone-show/

The first drone show on the playa

# Burning Man: the first drone show

In 2018 we flew the first drone show at Burning Man. Studio DRIFT brought Franchise Freedom to the playa in memory of Burning Man’s founder, Larry Harvey, under that year’s theme, I, Robot. About 70,000 people were in Black Rock City.

| | |
|---|---|
| Client | Burning Man |
| Location | Black Rock City, Nevada |
| Drones | 600 |
| Type | festival |

More [drone shows in Black Rock City](/drone-shows/in/black-rock-city/)

## A last wish for Larry Harvey

DRIFT had worked with Larry Harvey and the Burning Man organisation for three years to bring a drone show to the event. Larry passed away before the 2018 burn. The swarm flew above the Man in his memory.

## I, Robot

The theme that year was I, Robot. Franchise Freedom fitted it: a swarm of machines that moves like a flock of starlings, built on the birds’ real flight patterns. DRIFT’s motto for the playa: “More natural than natural.”

## The film

Burning Man itself published the film of the show, “Franchise Freedom, a Flying Sculpture”. We came back to the playa many times after, later with [1,000 drones and 15 shows](/drone-shows/burning-man/).

Franchise Freedom, a work by DRIFT, created by the artists Lonneke Gordijn, Ralph Nauta and Lucas van Oostrum. Read more about [Franchise Freedom](/drone-shows/franchise-freedom/).

We have flown at Burning Man in 2018, 2022 and 2023, and at the [Renegade Burn](/drone-shows/free-burn-2021/) in 2021.

Photos: Rahi Rezvani.

## More shows

[All shows](/drone-shows/)

[### FORMULA 1 LAS VEGAS GRAND PRIX

Formula 1 · Las Vegas - USA · 1,000 drones](/drone-shows/f1-las-vegas-gp-2023/)[### Shakira at Copacabana

Shakira · Copacabana Beach, Rio de Janeiro · 1,500 drones](/drone-shows/shakira-copacabana/)[### Björk at Coachella

Björk · Coachella · Indio, California · 864 drones](/drone-shows/coachella-drone-show/)

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