The first narrative feature to have scenes shot in space by a professional filmmaker hit the top of the Russian box office over the weekend, six months after the director and lead actress launched at a 12-day visit to the International Space Station.
“Vyzov (opens in a new tab)“(“Вызов”), or “The Challenge”, has grossed 445 million rubles (about US$5.5 million) from 1.4 million viewers since opening Friday, April 20 in Russia and post -Soviets – including during the actual launch of the mission site, Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
Russian actress Yulia Peresild, who in the film plays a thoracic surgeon who is sent on an emergency mission to save the life of a sick cosmonaut, and director Klim Shipenko, who wrote the script and also helped film in orbit, joined other members of the cast and crew for a special screening of ‘The Challenge’ at the State Kremlin Palace in Moscow on Cosmonautics Day (April 12), the Soviet cosmonaut’s 62nd birthday Yuri Gagarin becoming the first human to fly in space.
Also in attendance were professional cosmonauts Anton Shkaplerov and Oleg Novitsky, who launched and landed with Peresild and Shipenko respectively in October 2021, as well as cosmonaut Pyotr Dubrov, who was aboard the station at the time of filming. All three have roles in “The Challenge,” with Novitsky playing “Oleg Bogdanov,” the fictional cosmonaut who needs medical attention from Evgenia “Zhenya” Belyaeva (Peresild).
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A joint project between Russia’s federal space company Roscosmos, state-controlled TV network Channel One and production company Yellow, Black and White, “The Challenge” aimed to market Russia’s space program to a new generation.
“This is a unique opportunity to fly into space for 200 rubles [about $2.50 U.S.] cost of a movie ticket,” producer Konstantin Ernst said at a press conference promoting the film. “Spaceflight costs a pretty penny, but now you can buy a ticket and find yourself in the space.”
The total cost of making ‘The Challenge’, including marketing it to viewers, has not been disclosed, but it has been reported as at least 905 million rubles (US$11.6 million) by media outlets. Russians. The theatrical release of the film is set to expand to the Middle East on April 27. Further distribution in China and other countries around the world is still being decided.
For its part, Roscosmos promoted the film as a way to demonstrate the rapid formation of a crew, as well as attract the interest of women to join the country’s cosmonaut corps. (opens in a new tab). Peresild was chosen for the role and the (real) Soyuz MS-19 crew (opens in a new tab) from an initial pool of candidates of 3,000 women.
“We don’t have a lot of videos where you can watch [Russian] women in space, but there are a lot of American and European astronauts,” said Peresild, who became the fifth Russian woman to fly in space. “I followed them and noticed one thing: when women have a little curly hair, it flies beautifully weightless. So I had 20 rubber bands for my hair, and every night after washing my hair, I curled my hair on these electric rubber bands. That’s why the hair flew so magically. Otherwise, it would stand up like a ball.”
To promote the release of the film, Roscomos organized the Soyuz MS-18 descent module (opens in a new tab) be temporarily exhibited in central Moscow. The spacecraft brought Novitsky, Peresild and Shipenko back to Earth and a safe landing in Kazakhstan.
The Russian Post has also released a new postage stamp, part of the country’s “Modern Russian Cinema” series, depicting the movie poster art. The 30-ruble stamp was issued on Friday to coincide with the film’s theatrical release and was accompanied by special postal cancellations at Moscow, Star City (Zvezdny Gorodok) and Korolev railway stations in the Moscow region, Baikonur, Perm and Chelyabinsk.
“The Challenge” beat out plans announced by actor Tom Cruise to shoot a movie on the International Space Station, but it’s not the first movie with scenes shot off Earth. The 1984 Russian film “Return from Orbit” also featured scenes set in space but without the help of a professional filmmaker. Cosmonauts from the Russian Salyut 7 space station and Soyuz T-9 spacecraft doubled as both cast and crew.
Likewise, IMAX, TIME Studios, and Felix & Paul Studios have worked with astronauts to film large-format, 3D, and 360-degree documentaries aboard the International Space Station.
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