"Interstellar" Producer Speaks to IDS Class

 

The class has just finished its unit on time, which is typically highlighted by the reading of Einstein’s Dreams and class visits from members of Rivers’ science department. However, this year a special opportunity emerged with the release of Interstellar and its grounding in actual science.

 

“We watched the film earlier in the week and then the students had the opportunity to ask questions about how movies are made, from pitch to production,” Mr. Caplan said. “In this particular instance, Ms. Obst had become friends with Kip Thorne, a professor at Cal Tech, and together they had an idea of doing a movie about relativity and time.”

 

Over the course of nearly eight years, Obst and Thorne worked to make the movie possible, enlisting the help of Christopher and Jonathan Nolan to direct and write the movie. Throughout the film’s development, the duo’s paramount concern was to maintain the film’s scientific integrity.

 

“This fit perfectly with what we cover in the class because we focus on how ideas become other ideas – in this case, how a scientific idea inspired a film,” Caplan said.

 

What made this project even more interesting was that the film was also able to inspire a bit of scientific inquiry. In order to produce a visual representation of a black hole that was scientifically sound, Thorne had to pursue further research of his own that led to new information on the topic.

 

Students will be tasked with creating their own adaptation of a text for their final project and found the experience of hearing from a professional to be incredibly valuable. To see how artistic creativity and science combine to produce something that is not only visually exciting but also scientifically accurate demonstrated the impact Interdisciplinary Studies can have on the world.