Video: Tasked with finding a planet capable of sustaining life, a pair of robots ramble around unexplored terrain, conducting experiments. All is routine on their latest sojourn in Planet Unknown… until their environment takes an unexpected turn. Good thing they have each other to see the mission through.
Director Shawn Wang’s engaging short was his graduation film at Communication University of China. It took him 11 months to complete, he says, and notes some influences that sci-fi fans will no doubt recognise:
The idea started back in 2014 when Interstellar was released. I was deeply impressed by the movie and was inspired by the two robots TARS and CASE. The idea of intellectual robots exploring space developed from there.
Other inspirations include Pixar movies like WALL-E and Toy Story, as well as CHAPPiE, NASA documentaries about Mars Rover Curiosity, and short films by individuals like Alex Roman’s The Third & The Seventh, Richard Mans’ Abiogenesis, Erik Wernquist’s Wanderers, Alf Lovvold’s Dawn of the Stuff, and so many more.