posted 03-20-2025 07:04 PM               

Celebrating the 40th Anniversary of 'The Dream is Alive'

April 9, 2025 | 7 pm ET
Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, VA and Presented Online

National Air and Space Society Members Only
in-person registration | online registration

Presenters: Marsha Ivins and James Neihouse

In the early 1980s, IMAX, NASA, Lockheed Martin, and the National Air and Space Museum came together to create the first ever filmed-in-space large format movie, "The Dream is Alive," which was released in June 1985. Sequences for the movie were filmed during three Space Shuttle missions in 1984, including STS-41D, the first mission of Discovery, using 2D cameras. One of those cameras is now in the Museum’s collection.

Astronauts were trained to work like cinematographers and even changed film for the camera while in space. The result wowed moviegoers as it immersed them in the experience of spaceflight for the first time. It continues to stand as a landmark in filmmaking.

National Air and Space Society members are invited to this event celebrating the 40th anniversary of the film’s premiere.

In Person at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center: The event will begin with a panel discussion featuring IMAX cinematographer James Neihouse and Space Shuttle astronaut Marsha Sue Ivins, moderated by the Museum's Jennifer Levasseur, curator for astronaut cameras, chronographs, and the Space Shuttle. Afterwards, "The Dream is Alive" will be screened in the Airbus IMAX Theater.

Presented Online: Levasseur's conversation with Ivins and Neihouse will be streamed live for members who register in advance. Members tuning in virtually will also have temporary access to a recording of the film.

Registration is required for both the in-person event and the virtual live stream of the program.

posted 04-11-2025 03:13 PM               

'The Dream is [still] Alive': First IMAX film shot in space at 40 years

James Neihouse had one more thing to share. From inside a tote bag, he pulled out a chrome frame displaying 11 strips of tape, each of which had printed text and handwritten notes.

These were labels removed from film cans, the award-winning cinematographer explained. But not just from any film — these were the 41-year-old labels from the third space shuttle mission to carry an IMAX camera into Earth orbit. The rolls were used in the making of the first movie to include scenes shot in space, as first released four decades ago this June.

posted 04-12-2025 10:32 AM               

To this day, any time I hear a seagull, I think of the movie. Or when I see video of Italy in space, my mind immediately goes to Walter Cronkite saying, "The boot of Italy."