STARSEEK 01 – turning an illustrated alien world into a cinematic first-landing sequence

[RolandSciFi]

Hi everyone,

I thought this might be a good place to share something I've been working on.

One of the things I find most fascinating in space science fiction is not necessarily the journey itself, but the moment when a crew finally reaches an unknown world.

The first landing.
The first look outside.
The first step onto a place where you don't yet understand the environment, its history, or what may have happened there before you arrived.

That idea became an important part of FARBLOOD, an independent science-fiction universe I've been developing. Within it, STARSEEK follows six separate expedition ships leaving Earth on different missions into the unknown.

For STARSEEK 01, I wanted to find out whether the illustrated world I had already created for the books could actually work as a moving cinematic sequence rather than just a series of animated still images.

So I produced this short Proof of Concept. It shows the ASCENT shuttle completing its landing on an alien world called Candidate 01, the rear ramp opening, and the first human contact with the surface.

The sequence is about 4:49 minutes:



Generative image and video tools are part of the production process, but the world, story, characters, shot planning, editing, sound design and overall direction are developed and assembled by me.

I'm especially curious what people who spend a lot of time with space and exploration games think about the feeling of the landing itself.

Does the world feel unknown enough?
Does the slow approach work for you, or would you want the first contact with the planet to move faster?

I'd genuinely be interested in your impressions.

Best,
Roland