Voyager 1, the unmanned spacecraft, was launched in 1977 to explore our outer solar system. It is a journey that has continued until today and looks like it will keep going for some time yet.

While NASA is still getting signals from the craft one has to wonder what it would be like if Voyager 1 could livestream its journey on YouTube. What wonders would we see, what wondrous things has our space faring progeny  seen?

That is the thought that the incredibly talented people at PostPanic had; and as a way to honor Dutch graphic designer Arjan Groot who died at the age of 39 on July 16, 2011, from cancer, the whole company pushed their CG abilities to the limits. The results of that push is this short film called Stardust and tries to tell the story of the wonders of the things that Voyager 1 might have seen.

The film’s story centers on the idea that in the grand scheme of the universe, nothing is ever wasted and it finds comfort in us all essentially being Stardust ourselves. Voyager represents the memories of our loved ones and lives that will never disappear.

From a creative standpoint, Rozema wanted to explore our preconceived perceptions of how the universe appears which are fed to us by existing imagery from sources such NASA or even sci-fi films. By creating a generated universe, Rozema was able to take his own ‘camera’ to other angles and places within the cosmos.
Objects and experiences we are visually familiar with are looked at from a different point of view. For example, standing on the surface of the sun looking upwards or witnessing the death and birth of a star  - not at all scientifically correct but instead a purely artistic interpretation of such events.

Rozema says, ‘I wanted to show the universe as a beautiful but also destructive place. It’s somewhere we all have to find our place within. As a director, making Stardust was a very personal experience but it’s not intended to be a personal film and I would want people to attach their own meanings to the film so that they can also find comfort based on their own histories and lives.’

So without further ado here is the culmination of their work – enjoy.

via io9