The Army has “Saving Private Ryan,” the Navy has “Top Gun,” the Marine Corps has “Full Metal Jacket” and, now, an animated children’s movie might be the Space Force’s most in-depth and accurate film depiction yet.
Disney and Pixar’s newly released “Elio” is a story about a young orphan who is being raised by his aunt, Air Force Maj. Olga Solis, who is an orbital analyst tracking space debris. The 11-year-old boy has a deep fascination with outer space and dreams of being abducted by aliens one day in hopes of making intergalactic friends.
The film was in production well before the Space Force was ever created, and the Air Force, and later the Space Force, offered tours to Travis Air Force Base, Beale Air Force Base and the now-renamed Vandenberg Space Force Base, all in California, where “airmen and eventually Guardians helped advise the film’s producers, directors, screenwriters, lyricist, artist and animators on military life, space operations and the Department of the Air Force’s role in space,” the Space Force told Military.com in an emailed statement.
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The animated film, even though it centers on aliens, does showcase a realistic depiction of what the military’s mission of tracking debris in space actually looks like. It also comes after the Space Force’s top enlisted leader met with Hollywood studio executives and producers last year in an effort to pitch accurate depictions of Guardians on the silver screen, a necessity after a defunct Netflix show titled “Space Force” cast a shadow over the service branch’s early days.
Chief Master Sergeant of the Space Force John Bentivegna told Military.com in an emailed statement that he found it “inspiring” to see the film highlight the role of Guardians and other service members.
“The fact that the Space Force was created within the film’s production timeframe highlights our remarkable growth as a service and how quickly things are changing in the space domain,” Bentivegna said. “I believe this film is a valuable catalyst for conversations about the Space Force’s mission, and I hope it inspires future generations to learn more about us.”
Maj. Solis’ role as an orbital analyst plays a significant plot point in the film, and the use of her military skills even gets Elio and her out of some treacherous situations. The Space Force sees other important messages from the film relevant for military communities too.
In the movie, Elio meets a being named Glordon, an alien who comes from a warmongering species, and the two, despite their differences, become friends. Throughout their adventure, the two ultimately learn lessons of acceptance, understanding, friendship and peace.
“I think the film does a really good job talking about relationships and showing what it could feel like as a military child who frequently deals with change and finding one’s place in a new environment,” Develyn Watson, who helped support the movie as the deputy director of the Department of the Air Force Entertainment Liaison Office, said in a news release earlier this month.
That message was intentional. In 2019, Adrian Molina, the movie’s co-writer and co-director, wanted to tour Beale Air Force Base for inspiration.
“Molina was born at the base and had been writing a story centered on how he felt growing up as a child in a military family,” the Department of Defense said in a news release. Military families were invited to advance screenings of the film across the country.
The depictions, messages and themes were a stark departure from the Space Force’s earliest showcases in media.
The Netflix comedy series “Space Force” starring actor Steve Carell helped feed late-night talk show host punch lines about the creation of the new service during President Donald Trump’s first administration.
It got lukewarm reviews from critics and was ultimately canceled by Netflix after two seasons, leading many Space Force Guardians to rejoice in the show’s demise, Military.com previously reported.
Last summer, Military.com first reported that Bentivegna was at the Fox Studio Lot in California, where he pitched the importance of Space Force Guardians’ role in national security to nearly 20 Hollywood directors and executives — which included Jerry and Janet Zucker, famous directors and producers of films such as “Airplane!” “The Naked Gun” and “Friends with Benefits.”
That meeting came in the wake of the movie “Fly Me to the Moon,” which had actors Channing Tatum, Scarlett Johansson and Woody Harrelson in a story about the 1960s space race. Patrick Space Force Base in Florida was used in the filming of that movie, and Bentivenga was there for the premiere.
“Any program that starts conversations about the ongoing, vital mission of the U.S. Space Force is a worthwhile endeavor — we hope to inspire younger generations to consider learning more about and perhaps even joining,” the service said in a statement.
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