The Connected Universe

by Malcom Carter
The story of “The Connected Universe” actually begins in my early childhood when I received a series of Time Life books about space and the moon landings. I remember being utterly fascinated by space, our place in the Universe, and the idea that we were now not only able to peer into space with telescopes, but that we were actually able to go into space and explore, and that we had taken our first “few small steps”.
Fast forward three decades later when I would find myself becoming a part of a very ambitious “real world” space project to pursue the possibility of giant space-based solar powered satellites that could help harness the energy of the sun, 24 hours a day, supplying consistent “clean power” and ending the fossil fuel crisis on our planet. My work as a humanitarian filmmaker had me constantly searching for big ideas like this that could help improve our world.
I committed a decade of my life to this project, travelling the world and meeting with global leaders and astronauts: being a part of NASA think tanks and workshops about developing new possibilities in the commercial space field. I felt like I was living my greatest dream – involved with a space-based project that could help benefit humanity in extraordinary ways. I am the happiest when I am helping people and this seemed like the most profound way I could make a difference.
In 2008, the global financial crisis hit. It was a setback that was too great for our project to overcome. We had to close operations. Yet, my passion for space and making a difference continued to burn bright. I had pitched several space-related projects to the Discovery Channel. One of the ideas that I was totally fascinated with was that Einstein died believing his most important work was not accomplished – the search for a Unified Field Theory.
In 2008, I pitched a program to the Discovery Channel to examine the ideas that continue to build upon Einstein’s work, some from within the system and a few other very different ideas from outside mainstream thinking. Nassim Haramein was one of the people I was interested in, but at that time no significant advances had been made and there was no “third act” to the story… it was just “the search continues….”. So I kept my eye on the field to remain aware of any interesting developments.
In 2013, I heard that Nassim Haramein had proposed a new theory about the measurement of the charge radius of the proton. I flew to Hawaii to check out his work and felt that he was onto something with his approach. Here was a possibility to share Einstein’s vision and what it could mean to the world with a scientist who continued to pursue Einstein’s ideas! My decades of humanitarian film work inspired me to want to help people “connect to the science” in a way that could help them see the world in a new way. I wanted to show people how they could become more aware of the patterns of nature that created the world and the connection that they had to the stars, and that becoming more aware of this interconnection could help many feel differently about their life. I wanted to show people the importance of being willing to “think differently”.
This is where the production journey of the film began.
From the very beginning I wanted to make the film “special”. I wanted to do more than communicate information; I wanted to inspire – to touch people’s hearts and to help them “feel” the ideas presented in the movie. Great efforts were made to make the complex science relatable. We also wanted to make the subject matter cinematically compelling wherever we could. We wanted to create “visual poetry”. As a huge movie fan, I loved the line in the movie, “CONTACT”, when Jodie Foster’s character, a scientist, at a loss for words to describe the almost indescribable beauty of the Universe said, “They should have sent a poet.”
Poetic and cinematic presentation of science is extremely complex and also very costly and our funding fell short. Then an amazing miracle! We reached out to the world through crowdfunding and over 3,000 amazing people from 100 countries helped support our project. It is deeply humbling and very beautiful to have received this global support for what we certainly believe are important ideas. Thanks to the crowd funders’ incredible support, we were able to continue our journey . After almost 15,000 hours of work and many obstacles overcome, the film was finished and finally available to be shared with the world. The team and I are very excited for you to see the film. I hope watching it inspires you just as much as we have been inspired in the making of it.

The Music

The music is a very important part of the film as well. This is why I chose to work with the talented composer, Daryl Bennett, once again. Daryl has worked with me for many years on my humanitarian projects and always brings great heart to any project through his wonderful compositions. I counted on Daryl to bring “the heart” to The Connected Universe and, as I hope you will hear for yourself, he most certainly did!

DARYL BENNETT

Daryl Bennett has been composing award winning scores for film and television for over 27 years. Credits include Lost Solace, The Connected Universe, The Bleeding Edge, The Exhibition (Emmy award winner, Canadian Screen Award Winner) Nash – The Documentary, The Vetala, Kids In Jail, Voyage of the Unicorn, Outer Limits, Higher Ground, Engaged To Kill, Little Brother of War, Once In A Blue Moon, Decoys, Beggars and Choosers, The Entrance, and First Wave, among many others. He has won four Leo awards and has been nominated for a Gemini, a Canadian Screen Award, a Genie, and two Grammys.
Bennett’s career includes experience as a sound designer, audio post supervisor, film composer, film editor, associate producer, and director. He has worked on numerous feature films, television productions, documentaries, web productions, commercials, and corporate videos.
As a drummer and recording artist, Bennett’s success has enabled him to work with a wide range of artists and producers such as Ray Charles, David Foster, Andrae Crouch, Celine Dion, Kenny Rogers, Kenny G, Kenny Loggins, Powder Blues, and many more. He has also enjoyed numerous collaborations as a music producer and songwriter earning a Grammy nomination for Best Pop/Contemporary Gospel Album with Andrae Crouch.
Between 1989-2000 he co-owned and operated Ferocious Fish Productions, a creative audio post production boutique located in Yaletown, Vancouver, where he produced well over a hundred hours of broadcast audio mixes.

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