CaSSIS. Mars Demystified, 17min., Switzerland
Directed by Tatiana Keller
CaSSIS is a high-resolution color stereo camera in Mars orbit, making remarkable images of the Red planet. So what mysteries has it revealed today?

https://magicsciencepro.com/cassis

Get to know the filmmaker:

1. What motivated you to make this film?
I was a PostDoc in the Space Department of Bern University. My exsupervisor Nicolas Thomas is the head of the CaSSIS experiment. He has terrific charisma and a very cinematic voice. He knew about my passion for combining science and art and agreed to be involved in the movie project. The idea of the first episode belongs entirely to him. I just turned it into a detective story)

2. From the idea to the finished product, how long did it take for you
to make this film?
It took us two years. We had a script, storyline and even made a voice recording for the first episode. What we didn't have was money for computer graphics. One year later, we received grant support from NCCR PlanetS, and thanks to that, we involved the best space artist, Tim Stupak, who created a realistic Mars Landscape for the movie. Even more, we were able to have for the project two talented artists, Arina Stupak and Geena Gasser. Thanks to them, it was possible to show the detective Nick character in comics, not only voice as in our initial script. That made our « CaSSIS.Mars Demystified » special, I think. So, to finish two episodes with beautiful graphics and animations, it took us another year. And in December 2022, the moves were ready. We are still in search of grant support to continue our series. We have a script for the next two episodes: „Spiders" and „Water. "

3. How would you describe your film in two words!?
Mars demystified.

4. What was the biggest obstacle you faced in completing this film?
The war in Ukraine. It just stopped the project for several months and gave a lot of stress to everyone. Most of our team was from Russia. Our artists and composer have to leave the country because of a mobilisation. Plus, due to sanctions, we could not pay for the work any more, and the project was on the edge of not being finished. But in the end, we have luckily found the solution. Thanks to many efforts from the team and PlanetS side, we made two episodes.

5. What were your initial reactions when watching the audience talking
about your film in the feedback video?
I was crying. It was tears of happiness. After such a long way and all the obstacles, the movie finally found its audience. The reviews show that all the work that we did was worth it.

6. When did you realise that you wanted to make films?
I have been a fan of space scientist Carl Sagan since my childhood. His movie series „Cosmos" and his books inspired me to become a scientist. Following his steps to combine science and science popularisation, I decided to receive a second education as a film director at VGIK - the Russian historical cinematography university, from where famous Russian film directors graduated. How to show the Beaty of science? Make a movie!

7. What film have you seen the most in your life?
Interstellar! It is a fantastic combination of pure science and Feature Film! I dream of filming such type of movie.

8. What other elements of the festival experience can we and other
festivals implement to satisfy you and help you further your filmmaking
career?
Live interview? And maybe to connect young filmmakers and famous film directors so we can follow their steps to make one day a piece of art.
But you already are doing a great job! So continue to be!

9. You submitted to the festival via FilmFreeway. How has your
experiences been working on the festival platform site?
Very comfortable

10. What is your favourite meal?
Georgian cousin - it is so yummy!

11. What is next for you? A new film?
New episodes for "Mars Demystified". I wish to make it a TV series. It could be a great educational series, as you told in the review.
Also, I dream of making a full-length movie, but for this, I need to find a good investor. We are a unique team, and we are scientists making movies and artists passionate about science. So it would be great to create more great films to inspire people in science!