Nova And Smithson Team On Life Beyond Earth

Darlow Smithson Productions (DSP) and the venerable science series NOVA are teaming up on A Journey Through The Solar System: Life Beyond Earth (w/t), the two companies have announced.
NOVA has commissioned DSP to produce a two-hour special that will investigate the science behind a revolutionary view of our solar system.
The documentary will take viewers on a viewers on a visual journey to its farthest reaches and beyond, where scientists are seeking to answer some of the biggest questions about life on other planets.
Leading astrobiologists, including Chris McKay of NASA's Ames Research Centre, will explain how recent scientific advances and discoveries are changing our understanding of what life is and where it can take hold. The film will introduce us to distant worlds only recently brought into focus, revisit the violent birth of our solar system and will demonstrate the latest thinking on its origins and structure.
Interviews with scientists and cinema verité will be supported by a mix of the latest spacecraft images and cutting edge CGI sequences, immersing the audience in the sights and sounds of alienate environments. A variety of settings from our own planet will also be incorporated into the film, from mission launches to deep ocean trenches, where creatures thrive in conditions similar to those elsewhere in the universe.
Ben Bowie, Senior Executive Producer, Darlow Smithson Producitons, said: "We look to create programmes that resonate with large audiences - and almost everyone wonders about life on other planets. It's an exciting time for those investigating our solar system, with dozens of missions and experiments taking place. For this documentary we wanted to offer a window into this exploration, taking stock of what we know, what we think we know, and what we may soon find out."
Howard Swartz, Executive Producer of NOVA, said: "There is a revolution taking place in planetary science. The idea that the planets and moons in our solar system are cold and dead is giving way to the possibility that many places may actually be habitable for some forms of life."
A Journey Through The Solar System: Life Beyond Earth is a Darlow Smithson Production for NOVA. Executive Producer Howard Swartz for NOVA commissioned the film, which was directed and produced by Oliver Twinch and executive produced by Ben Bowie for Darlow Smithson.
(KMcA)