After nearly transporting thousands of Houstonians to the International Space Station, what do you do for a do-over?
If you are Felix & Paul Studios, you invite them to fly to the moon.
“Space Explorers: THE INFINITE,” which had its U.S. premiere in Houston three years ago, now returns to Space City for a limited second run. The interactive and immersive experience once again invites the public to explore a virtual, life-size replica of the International Space Station (ISS), allowing them to almost feel what it is like to be an astronaut.
“THE INFINITE,” a spin-off of the Emmy-winning series “Space Explorers: The ISS Experience,” produced by Felix & Paul in association with TIME Studios, combines footage from the largest production ever shot in space (more than 200 hours) 3D 360 cinematics shot over nearly three years along with virtual reality displays and a virtual model of the space station that encourages visitors to physically walk around the orbital outpost’s layout while exploring 360-degree stories in its many modules.
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“Everyone I’ve met has told me, ‘I can’t wait to see this again, because it’s a different experience every time I come here,'” said Félix Lajeunesse, co-founder and creative director of Felix & Paul Studios. The director of ‘Space Explorers: THE INFINITE’ said in an interview with CollectSPACE.com.
“When you visit the space station, there are 60 virtual reality scenes you can activate, both inside and outside the ISS. You’ll usually have time to see 12 in a single visit. So this is a different experience the second time you come, or the third time, the fourth time, or even the fifth time.” “It will be an experience,” he said.
In its first incarnation, “THE INFINITE” supplemented the virtual reality portion of the experience with the chance to step outside the space station and witness astronauts spacewalking. This spectacular scene was made possible by the use of a VR camera, the first outside the ISS, mounted on the station’s primary robotic arm.
This was followed by a multi-room art installation focusing on the aesthetics of mathematical formulas by visual and audio artist Ryoji Ikeda.
Now visitors are going further into space, reliving the launch of NASA’s Artemis 1 mission to the moon in 2022. The spacewalk and some of Ikeda’s work are still there, but the experience ends with the first liftoff of the Space Launch System (SLS) heavy-lift rocket; This marked a major milestone that included NASA returning astronauts to the lunar surface and the landing of the first rocket. woman, first black person, and first non-American astronaut to go to the south pole of the moon.
Felix and Paul filmed the launch of Artemis 1 and, for the first time, broadcast it live in 360 degrees to full-dome movie theaters, planetariums, and personal VR headsets. The same image, captured by cameras positioned near the launch pad at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, was adapted as the finale of “THE INFINITE” to provide a second, unprecedented image.
Since its premiere in Montreal and then Houston, “THE INFINITE” has been performed in Tacoma, Washington; Richmond, California; Vancouver, British Columbia; and Denver, Colorado. Now in Houston, “THE INFINITE” is scheduled to continue at least through the end of June. Upcoming cities include West Palm Beach, Florida, opening on June 4, and Charlotte, North Carolina, opening on September 20.
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“Of all the places we’ve been, we think Houston is the most natural fit for this show,” Lajeunesse said. “It took two and a half years, working with hundreds of people at Johnson Space Center in Houston, to capture all the content in space. And obviously, the astronauts who were involved in creating the show were here and their families were here.”
“So when we bring the experience here to Houston, it feels like we’re bringing the experience home,” he told CollectSPACE.
“Space Explorers: INFINITE” Open Thursday through Sunday at Silver Street Studios at Sawyer Yards in Houston. Tickets are $35 for adults, with discounts available for children, seniors, students and military members. Group and family rates are also available.
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