I don’t think I had been into any theater or even large auditorium since the beginning of the pandemic until this week. I attended an advanced showing of Amazon’s wonderful new film Goodnight Oppy which chronicles the 15 year odyssey of the Spirit and Opportunity Mars rovers. Its not so much a story of the rover through the eyes of humans, but the story of the humans through the eyes of the rover. The showing was at CalTech’s Beckman Auditorium and was specifically for members of the JPL and CalTech community, which made it into a special night for a number of reasons.

First, I’ve always been struck by venue itself. The standalone theater is an architectural the focal point of campus and I find the vertiginous interior breathtaking whenever I walk into the building.

Second was the subject matter. I personally know many of the featured individual featured in the film and it was fun to hear the story through their voices. Many of them were also there in person which brings me to my third point.

Prior to the pandemic, I did not frequently go out to movies, films, or concerts. But the years of social distancing have made me come to really appreciate the value of shared community experiences, and that is a lesson I intend to remember for a long time.