SSFX (Space Sound Effects) Short Film Festival: Using the film festival model to inspire creative art-science and reach new audiences

TL;DR

The SSFX Short Film Festival creatively used space sound recordings to engage diverse audiences with space weather science through art and film, fostering dialogue beyond traditional scientific outreach.

Contribution

This project innovatively combined space science, sound art, and film festival models to reach new audiences and promote science-art dialogue.

Findings

Successfully engaged non-science audiences worldwide

Produced seven award-winning short films from space sounds

Demonstrated art's potential to enhance science communication

Abstract

The ultralow frequency analogues of sound waves in Earth's magnetosphere play a crucial role in space weather, however, the public is largely unaware of this risk to our everyday lives and technology. As a way of potentially reaching new audiences, SSFX made 8 years of satellite wave recordings audible to the human ear with the aim of using it to create art. Partnering with film industry professionals, the standard processes of international film festivals were adopted by the project in order to challenge independent filmmakers to incorporate these sounds into short films in creative ways. Seven films covering a wide array of topics/genres (despite coming from the same sounds) were selected for screening at a special film festival out of 22 submissions. The works have subsequently been shown at numerous established film festivals and screenings internationally. These events have attracted diverse non-science audiences resulting in several unanticipated impacts upon them, thereby demonstrating how working with the art world can open up dialogues with both artists and audiences who would not ordinarily engage with science.