Hey Chasers!
I just received our media accreditation from the Kennedy Space Center this morning. Atlantis’ final Roll-out to be put on display at the KSC is scheduled for this Friday November 2nd.
This is definitely a “full circle” moment for us as we head down to Florida once again to see Atlantis put to rest. In June of 2011, we made our first request to the KSC for media accreditation. It was too close to the Atlantis launch (one of the most anticipated in history) to get the passes the first time around. We conceived of Chasing just prior to June and larger media agencies scooped up the spotlight before hand. We left on a day’s notice for Atlantis’ move to the VAB that we captured last March. Again too late.
Our plane tickets to see Atlantis’ final roll-out this Friday, November 2nd were already booked before we had the passes we got this morning so I have been anxious about the trip not knowing if we would actually get access. This uncertainty echoed of our first journey to Florida in July of 2011 when we weren’t even sure if the launch was going to happen; Florida drenched in Summer rainfall. We also have much more of the vision for Chasing to show. Last time we were applying for media passes on good intentions and charm (not always a bad place to start. Certainly marketable qualities) but this time we have footage, interviews, stills, the improved site. With something more tangible to show our odds increased. However, this was one of those “who you know” situations as well. The incredible people we have been able to meet while filming Chasing as been a remarkable part of this journey as well as how we met all of them. Jim Kennedy we met through a damaged air conditioner in Paul’s PT Cruiser. Bodyshop owner happened to know him and mentioned it when Paul brought up the project in casual conversation at the dealership. Our latest connection to NASA public relations came through window writers. The day before we left on our first journey to Florida, I passed a toy store and thought it prudent to buy some window writers and decorate our car (with Mel’s and Paul’s assistance given my utter lack of artistic talent) with the web address and twitter feed. A month after returning, we were connected through twitter to a series of people who helped us climb the ladder until we had the direct contact information needed to submit our media accreditation. Not sure what the life lesson is from that. Shameless promotion? Colorful branding? I’d like to think it’s that the smallest opportunity can lead to incredible experiences if we let them.
We will be keeping you posted over the next few days on our latest Florida expedition to Chase Atlantis one last time. Be sure to join us on WordPress, Facebook, Twitter and our newsletter! Also keep an eye out for our impending IndieGoGo campaign to help complete the film that will be posted by the end of the week with a new trailer! So stoked!
-Matthew