“The Final Man on the Moon” is returning this December for the fiftieth anniversary of NASA’s final lunar touchdown — with new recommendation for the subsequent.
The filmmakers behind the 2014 award-winning documentary have introduced the upcoming debut of their new short-format edition with a brand new give attention to the Apollo 17 mission, its crew and those that supported humanity’s most up-to-date journey to the lunar floor. The movie now consists of astronaut Gene Cernan’s never-before-heard phrases to the members of the Artemis Technology, the subsequent individuals to go away their bootprints on the moon.
“The start line is the final act of the unique movie,” mentioned Mark Craig, director of “The Last Man of the Moon (opens in new tab),” in an interview with collectSPACE.com. “The unique appears to be a favourite for a lot of space followers and was definitely a particular expertise for those who labored on the mission.”
“Gene Cernan was a rare and beneficiant man,” he mentioned.
Associated: Eugene Cernan: Last Man on the Moon
“The Final Man on the Moon,” which premiered three years earlier than Cernan’s death at the age of 82 (opens in new tab), shared the naval aviator-turned-NASA astronaut’s “epic story” of how he got here to fly to the moon twice and lead the ultimate exploration of its floor up to now. On Dec. 14, 1972, Cernan stepped off the moon (opens in new tab), turning into the twelfth and final particular person to go away his bootprints within the lunar soil.
“We wished to do one thing distinctive to have a good time our pal, the complete crew and the mission,” mentioned Keith Haviland, producer and chief government of Haviland Digital. “There was a gold mine of modern-day filmed materials and archive not used within the original feature documentary (opens in new tab). So, we reworked the launch sequence, added extra on the lunar EVAs [moonwalks] — together with coping with a damaged fender on the rover — and on the return to Earth, and the way that felt.”
“We additionally spend extra time in archive with Gene’s crewmates, Jack Schmitt and Ron Evans,” mentioned Craig. “The uncommon footage of Ron talking in 1980 is especially transferring.” (Evans died ten years later in 1990.)
The filmmakers additionally look ahead, turning to the astronauts who’re following in Cernan’s footsteps and who will invalidate his standing because the “final man” on the moon.
“Remarkably, we now have Gene’s phrases to those next moonwalkers (opens in new tab), by no means earlier than heard,” mentioned Haviland. “A part of it’s in regards to the questions he wished to ask them. He additionally wished to encourage, saying that with new tech, the subsequent technology can’t solely equal the achievements of Apollo, however go a lot additional.”
“The Final Man on the Moon — Apollo 17” version runs simply 23 minutes lengthy, particularly aimed toward museum and institutional venues. The movie will premiere this December at Space Center Houston (opens in new tab), the customer middle for NASA’s Johnson Space Center, as a part of the middle’s deliberate Apollo 17 fiftieth anniversary celebration.
“We wished to completely begin with our buddies at House Heart Houston from December onwards. We’ve got had some nice successes with earlier premieres there and it is a spot to teach, encourage and entertain throughout generations,” mentioned Haviland. “The movie is way more than only a celebration of a second, so we’re additionally taking a look at different establishments and streaming choices.”
Along with Haviland, “The Final Man on the Moon — Apollo 17” is produced by Gareth Dodds and government produced by Mark Stewart.
Observe collectSPACE.com (opens in new tab) on Facebook (opens in new tab) and on Twitter at @collectSPACE (opens in new tab). Copyright 2022 collectSPACE.com. All rights reserved.
