Project Gemini (film)

Project Gemini (Звёздный разум) is a 2019 Russian science fiction film directed and written by Vyacheslav Lisnevskiy and co-produced by Viktor Denisyuk and Evgeniy Melentev, the company Kinodanz. Astrophysicists pick up a mysterious signal coming from outer space. An expedition sets out to visit this planet to find and inspect the source of the signal. The film stars Egor Koreshkov as Dr. Stephen Ross, together with Alyona Konstantinova, Katerina Shpitsa, Nikita Volkov, Aleksandr Kuznetsov, Mikhail Bashkatov and Ekaterina Kabak joining the cast.

Principal photography is scheduled for 2016, the film was shot in Moscow, Russia and Kazakhstan, the locations were chosen deliberately futuristic, so that the viewer had no doubts that the film was set in the future. For a believable transfer of the atmosphere of a spacecraft and a number of fantastic elements, the film crew traveled to Star City, Russia.

Project Gemini is scheduled to be released in Russia on November 28, 2019 and is set for distribution to the 20th Century Fox CIS.

Plot
In the not-too-distant future, mankind has made huge advances in its explorations of the cosmos, establishing scientific stations on many planets. An international project known as Gemini has resulted in the development of a unique planet terramorphing unit. But once the unit is launched, Earth loses connection with the carrier rocket transporting the unit outside the Solar System. The search leads to nowhere – the unit is lost.

Some time has passed, before one day a group of astrophysicists receive a mysterious signal from space. It seems to originate on a remote and as-yet uncharted planet. The signal creates dangerous irregularities in the Earth’s environment. An expedition is made to the planet itself, in order to locate the source of the signal. A small group of people – the vanguard of humanity – sets off into the unknown. They must endure dramatic and even tragic events to save the Earth from this dire threat.

Cast
• Egor Koreshkov as doctor Stephen Ross

• Alyona Konstantinova as Emily Novak

• Katerina Shpitsa as Jane Rutkovsky

• Nikita Volkov as Vadim

• Aleksandr Kuznetsov as senator Rigert

• Mikhail Bashkatov as Nicholas Stoller

• Ekaterina Kabak as Felicity

• Nikita Dyuvbanov as Frank

• Anvar Khaliluyev as bild editor

• Sergey Gilev as terrorist

• Sergey Kempo as Fred Aster

• Nikolay Serdtsev as Paul Paterson

• Konstantin Samoukov as Edward Ryan, captain

• Viktor Potapeshkin as David Kurtz

• Karina Ivanova as Veronica Lane

• Pyotr Romanov as Peter Taylor

• Dmitriy Frid as Richard Wilson

• Lisa Martinez as Leona Riva

• Sabina Akhmedova as Naomi Collins

• Marina Panferova

Development
The project was directed by Vyacheslav Lisnevskiy, previously acted as director of films Beyond the Edge (2018 film). Only such actions of the director could reflect the real picture of life on board the ship sent into space. This applies, including the landing on other planets. He wrote the script in collaboration with Dmitriy Zhigalov on the original production idea.

The company Kinodanz producers Viktor Denisyuk and Evgeniy Melentev completed filming the sci-fi film Project Gemini, the effect of which will unfold in the near future - both on Earth and in space. In the story, scientists, trying to solve the problem of overpopulation of the planet, trying to create a double of the Earth - this is the project Gemini. However, during the mission people discover a mysterious alien signal from outer space, which brings great danger to our own planet. An expedition is sent to the source of the signal to establish its nature.

Filming
Filming took place in Russia and Kazakhstan for 2 months. It will be released in the 2nd half of 2017.

The movie was shot in Moscow at specially selected locations: a recently built business center Comcity office park, in the territory of Moscow-City, near Aquamarine residential complex at Ozerkovskaya embankment, which are located on the territory of the Russian capital. Not without consultations with experts, astronauts, during a visit to the Star City, Russia. All these objects look pretty futuristic and reflect visual image of a future city in the movie, which will be further enhanced by computer graphics.

Sceneries of another planet to where, according to the story, a team of astronauts was sent, were shot at Charyn Canyon in Kazakhstan.

As for the spacecraft, the flight and landing frames of another planet, they will be fully modeled on a computer.

Post-production
At the studio large-scale stage scenery of a secret laboratory and a space ship’s interior was built in the pavilion. Particularly careful work from the artists required unique costumes, including space suits for the astronauts, as well as futuristic gadgets, smart phones and weapons.

The exterior of spaceship and scenes of flight and landing on the other planet will be completely computer-rendered. Visual effects in the movie will be produced by Kinodanz’s own computer graphics studio.

Release
Project Gemini film was scheduled to premiere in the Russian Federation by 20th Century Fox CIS on August 22, 2019. . Later it became known that the date of its release was postponed to November 28, 2019.

Marketing
The first trailer was released on Jun 14, 2018.