Russia Releases First Feature Film Shot In Space

The first feature film shot in space premiered in Russian cinemas on Thursday, as Moscow delighted in beating a rival Hollywood project amid a confrontation with the West over Ukraine.

“The Challenge” is about a surgeon dispatched to the International Space Station (ISS) to save an injured cosmonaut.

Russia sent an actress and a film director for a 12-day stint on the ISS in October 2021 to film scenes aboard the orbiting laboratory.

The Russian crew beat a Hollywood project announced in 2020 by “Mission Impossible” star Tom Cruise together with NASA and Elon Musk’s SpaceX.

At a Kremlin gala this month, Russian President Vladimir Putin lauded the film.

“We are the first to have shot a feature film in orbit, aboard a spacecraft. Once again the first,” he said.

The Soviet Union pioneered space travel — sending the first dog, man and woman into orbit — and the film crew’s mission added to a long list of firsts for Russia’s space industry after several setbacks, including botched launches.

In “The Challenge” a surgeon played by 38-year-old Yulia Peresild — one of Russia’s most glamorous actresses — is sent to the ISS to save a cosmonaut injured during a spacewalk.

Director Klim Shipenko, 39, who was in charge of camera, lighting and sound, brought back 30 hours of footage, 50 minutes of which were used in the final cut.