Dome Under Film Festival 2025
- What
- PLANETARIUM
- When
- General information
- See below for details
- Tickets
The annual Dome Under Film Festival returns to the Melbourne Planetarium at Scienceworks for its fifth year, offering 3 days of back-to-back fulldome films.
The only fulldome film festival in Australia, Dome Under Film Festival offers a carefully curated selection of fulldome-format films sourced globally.
The festival program will unfold across the 16-metre domed ceiling of the Melbourne Planetarium, providing an unparalleled hemispherical view. Paired with a state-of-the-art 5.1 surround sound system, attendees can expect an immersive, VR-like journey into the world of cinema.
Friday 31 January
| Session details | Tickets |
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| Session 1: Astronomy 1 7:30 to 8:45pm |
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| Session 2: World Stories 9 to 10:30pm |
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Saturday 1 February
| Session details | Tickets |
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| Session 3: Kids 1 2:30 to 3:45pm |
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| Session 4: Family 4 to 5:15pm |
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| Session 5: Astronomy 2 6:15 to 7:30pm |
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| Session 6: Mind Blowing Art 8 to 9:40pm |
Sunday 2 February
| Session details | Tickets |
|---|---|
| Session 7: Kids 2 2:30 to 3:45pm |
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| Session 8: Future Visions 4 to 5:45pm |
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| Session 9: Fabulous Fulldome 6:30 to 8:15pm |
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Session 1: Astronomy 1 | Friday | 7 to 8:45pm
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Dark Biosphere
Spain 27 minutes | dir. Javier Bollaín
Deep beneath the Earth's crust, hundreds of metres or kilometres below the surface, with no light, no air, and very little water, in pores and fissures of hard rock, scientists have found an enormous biodiversity of micro-organisms that thrive in extreme conditions. Dark Biosphere challenges everything we thought we knew and challenges us to rethink not only the origin and evolution of life on Earth but its possible existence throughout the Universe.
MMX: Martian Moons eXploration
Japan 40 minutes | dir. Hiromitsu Kohsaka
A new sample return mission MMX is an ambitious mission that builds upon the technology from Hayabusa and Hayabusa2 for landing on Phobos, a moon of Mars, to collect samples and return them to the Earth. If the sample collection is successful, we may obtain not only the first samples from Phobos, but also possibly the first materials from Mars. This will contribute to our understanding of the origin of Phobos, as well as elucidating the role of asteroids in bringing the seeds of life to the Earth.
Session 2: World Stories | Friday | 9 to 10:30pm
Viewer Advice: This session includes films with mature themes, including references to sexual abuse.
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takila milaythina-ti | Heart in Country
Australia 23 minutes | Rogers and Dave mangenner Gough in collaboration with Hive Planetarium
takila milaythina-ti | Heart in Country is a film by Dave mangenner Gough and Darryl Rogers, with music by Ian Chia. In this show, the Tasmanian Aboriginal Community of Northwest Tasmania takes you on a cultural journey through the rhythms of day and night where spirit is imprinted in Country. Experience sunrise, fire, hunt, collect, sunset, feed, story, dance, ceremony, and rest as you are immersed in the timeless stories imprinted in Country. Held in Country, hearts in Country.
This is Not a Ceremony
Canada 22 minutes | dir. AHNAHKTSIPIITAA (Colin Van Loon)
In a dream-like world, two Indigenous trickster poets guide us through narratives that challenge our notions of personal responsibility while exploring the darker realities of Indigenous life in Canada.
Antarctic Uruguay
Uraguay 33 minutes | dir. Leo Scarone
A documentary made during 4 years of work at the Artigas Antarctic Scientific Base, between the years 2019 and 2023. The film explores what happens at the base and who works there including the military personnel and scientific teams. This is the first documentary filmed with 360° technologies in Uruguay.
Session 3: Kids 1 | Saturday | 2:30 to 3:45pm
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The Stellars
Poland 28 minutes | dir. Maciej Ligowski & Maciej Rasała
The Stellars is a visually stunning, heartfelt, and insightful film aimed at our youngest viewers, ages 3 to 8. It recounts the adventures of three cosmic friends who crash on Earth, damaging the life-support machine for their Yumi Plumi trees – their only food source. Only by engaging with young viewers in the audience will they be able to answer the question: What do plants need to live? This theme, aligned with educational curricula, provides a relatable learning experience for children.
Total Eclipse: Chasers of the Lost Sleep
Canada 30 minutes | dir. François Guinaudeau & Sébastien Samyn
With help from her android sidekick, an insomniac hen named Kentucky embarks on a space-time journey to find the perfect solar eclipse that will finally help her get some sleep.
Session 4: Family| Saturday | 4 to 5:15pm
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Dinosaurs Under the Northern Lights
Japan 35 minutes | dir. Tsuguyasu Uchiyama
70 million years ago, during the Cretaceous Period, the Earth teemed with dinosaurs. Some reaching the far-flung North and South Poles. Centering on Nook, an infant carnivorous Nanuqsaurus, and Fal, an infant herbivore Alaskacephale, Dinosaurs Under the Northern Lights depicts the strange fate and curious bond between these two different species originally never supposed to cross paths. You will discover the story behind the dinosaurs that thrived in the polar regions under the beautiful skies of Alaska, where the brilliant Northern Lights shine. Delve into fascinating astronomical topics such as the relationship between the Earth and the Moon, rotation and revolution, the tilt of the Earth’s axis, and the reason behind the gorgeous Northern Lights themselves!
Niyah and the Multiverse
usa 26 minutes | dir. Adler Planetarium
If there are countless other universes out there, where does Niyah fit in? What about you? Niyah lives in a city called Chicago on a planet called Earth, and she has a lot of questions about space and time. How can a special mask help us understand who we are in the world? Do we really need ALL the laws of physics? How is the multiverse like the blues?
Join Niyah, her friend Luis, and a curious cat named Bast on an Afrofuturist journey through the multiverse and get inspired to dream up multiverse theories of your own.
Session 5: Astronomy 2 | Saturday | 6:15 to 7:30pm
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Total
Canada 6 minutes | dir. Sebastien Gauthier
Total recreates the unique experience of observing a total solar eclipse. Seeing the sky darken and being under daytime stars is a deeply moving experience that leaves no one indifferent. It's one of nature's most beautiful and emotional spectacles. With 360° images, the film initiates a quest for the total eclipse where anticipation is at its peak, leading us to a perfect alignment between the Sun, the Moon, and ourselves.
The Universe in a Room: The Story of the Planetarium
Japan 25 minutes | dir. Masaru Hirohashi
Even during rain or in the daytime, in a planetarium, we can enjoy a sky full of stars.
But this wonderful invention did not simply appear out of nowhere. Throughout history, humanity has been fascinated by the night sky, and various mechanical models were built, ultimately leading to a magical innovation, to dynamically represent the starry sky.
In this program, you can travel back in time to 100 years ago. Following the notes of the original inventors, you can re-live the challenges and triumphs behind the birth of the modern planetarium.
The Universe Through All the Senses
Czech Republic 33 minutes | dir. Pavel Karas & Jan Píšala
When asked about the universe, astronomers will describe it in a thousand different ways. Starting with diverse planets, charming comets, hot stars, and ethereal nebulae, they will talk about dark matter or energy and will take you on a journey to galaxies billions of light-years away.
For an ordinary Earthling, such a list of fancy terms feels just like flipping through a cookbook, without being able to taste the individual ingredients, let alone the finished product. That’s why we decided to serve you the universe in a completely different way – You will experience it with all your senses!
Session 6: Mind Blowing Art | Saturday | 8 to 9:40pm
Viewer Advice: This session includes films with sequences that contain stroboscopic imagery, which may not be suitable for those with photosensitive epilepsy.
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U221E
Mexico 8 minutes | dir. F3 Studio
U221E – Unicode for ∞ – is an artwork that explores diverse interpretations of infinity. Through a captivating blend of visuals and sound, the piece invites viewers to experience infinity as a multifaceted concept – endless, cyclical, and expansive. It integrates geometric and numerical elements to construct dynamic environments, where abstract forms and patterns evoke the boundlessness of space and time. Using light, spatial dynamics, and precise geometric design, U221E creates a meditative journey that merges abstract ideas with tangible sensations. The artwork bridges imagination and reality, encouraging audiences to contemplate their perception of eternity and the infinite.
Within
Poland 10 minutes | dir. Ari Dykier
Within is an animated work created in collage technique in a characteristic, surreal style.
A visual suite that depicts the emotional and mental stages of experiencing fear, stress, curiosity, passion, getting lost, identification or calmness and stability.
All the characters represent in a symbolic way a specific feeling or memory connected with the author’s subconscious but could be understood differently depending on each viewers interpretation. The film is an oneiric journey in time and was created in artistic process exploring things known and unknown.
Everyone has an inner world, you just need to connect.
What I Am
Mauritius 4 minutes | dir. Max Anish
Let's dive into the thoughts of a painter in the form of a dream.
What I Am questions the identity and the weight of the unconscious through a fine technique of animated painting.
Entropy
Hungary 5 minutes | dir. Csaba Világosi
Immerse in the formation of complex life forms, observe how energy flows, travels through systems leading up to life, and takes on different forms at each stage. In the pursuit of balance, order creates disorder, and differences in energy create chemical reactions from which life is born.
As we progress through the layers of existence, you can see how the forms of beings become more and more complex and bustling and witness the wonder of life unfolding before your very eyes. Empty dry spaces come to life with an abundant and rampant outflow of nature. Enter this space bustling with radiance, pulsating energy, and ever-changing currents, and be a part of life.
Second Nature
USA 3 minutes | Dir. Ke Jyun Wu
Second Nature depicts a natural world in the digital age. In this world, water no longer flows in the familiar way but drifts gently like silk. The clouds in the sky emit a soft glow, reminiscent of fireflies dancing at night. The trees change their geometric forms with the seasons, displaying sharp, angular lines at times and soft, rounded curves at others.
Through this fantastical digital journey, viewers will be filled with awe and contemplation, re-examining their understanding of nature, and exploring new possibilities where technology and nature intertwine.
Stars of Classic
Germany 44 minutes | Dir. Robert Sawallisch
Embark on a musical journey through cosmic events, from the Big Bang to humanity’s future. Accompanied by Beethoven, Vivaldi, Tchaikovsky, and other masters, we witness galaxy births, supernovae, black holes, and the miracle of life. Explore distant planets, cosmic dangers like asteroid impacts and colliding galaxies, and dream of humanity’s future in space.
Stars of Classic merges music with education, offering timeless masterpieces and fascinating insights into the universe’s past and future. Featuring works by Beethoven, Strauss, Hildegard von Bingen, Mussorgsky, Vivaldi, and more.
Night Walk 2023
Taiwan 9 minutes | Dir. Chuang Ho
Lying in a room, staring at the ceiling, thoughts drift toward distant mountains. It begins with a sleepless night. After some time in darkness, a ceiling and a faint light come into view. In the shadows, flickering lines move. The perspective then floats through the house and gradually transitions to the outside world –streetlights, houses, and the city fading away. After passing through darkness, plants appear, leading into a forest filled with surreal, dreamlike scenes. Finally, everything returns to the sleepless room, ending the journey and leaving behind the memory of a dream.
Shift
United Kingdom 3 min | Dir. Ivan Solod
Shift by hilights.studio symbolises the transformative journey of an evolving media artist.
It's a creative journey marked by four crucial milestones, each embodied as a visual metaphor. These include Born, which stands for tuning into one's creative frequency; Search, a stage of seeking and discovering new facets of art; Imagination, the key element that fuels all artistic creation; and finally, Harmony, which signifies the perfect balance between idea and execution.
Session 7: Kids 2 | Sunday | 2:30 to 3:45pm
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Kitz the Cat's - Secret of the Space Station
South Korea 30 mininutes | dir. Tsuguyasu Uchiyama
The Earth in the far future, where humanity no longer exists. Cats that survived in the debris left behind by humanity have evolved into intelligent beings.
The three cats, Kitz, Tutti, and Pepe, are working as cleaners at NYASA. Weird signals were detected in the largest space junk in Earth's orbit (Humans called it the International Space Station)! Today's mission is to investigate the space station floating like a ghost ship!
The Great Solar System Adventure
United Kingdom25 minutes | dir. Max Crow
Join showman extraordinaire "The Great Schiaparelli" as he takes the audience on a death-defying space-time adventure within his wondrous Observatorium. From the sun-scorched surface of Mercury to the icy expanses of Pluto and beyond, prepare to be subjected to the myriad dangers and wonders of our Solar System, on a breath-taking tour that reveals just how precious our home planet really is.
Be warned though, the Observatorium isn’t just for show. It will transport the audience right to the heart of some of the deadliest locations in our slice of the heavens. It’s going to take some fancy flying to get everyone back in one piece!
Session 8: Future Visions | Sunday | 4 to 5:45pm
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I Saw the Future
Canada 6 minutes | dir. François Vautier
This experimental film plunges us at the heart of a 1964 BBC archive in which Arthur C. Clarke revealed his astonishingly precise vision of the future we now live in.
Recoding Entropia
Canada 9 minutes | dir. François Vautier
In the heart of nothingness, on the horizon of infinite space and unfathomable time, wanders an imposing geometry, delivering a mysterious message through its changing shape.
Feed
USA 5 minutes | dir. Kelon Cen, Weilu Ge
Combining video game elements, spatial soundscape, and transmedia storytelling, FEED takes the audience on a journey into a panopticon-like complex. The project aims to construct an immersive and interactive environment that invites the audience to critically observe and question their everyday living situation in a post-digital age.
Limbophobia
taiwan 25 minutes | dir. Wen Yee Hseih
Realm of silence, death lies still.
Malevolence surrounds, THEY choose to hide.
Limbophobia is director Wen-Yee Hsieh's second personal project, once again immersing the audience in his intense dark aesthetics. The film centres around the loss of insight within the collective society, and the struggle between individuals, which transforms into an experience of losing balance, to witness annihilation. Silent, intense, and eerie.
Numerous
Taiwan 9 minutes | Dir. Atz Huang
Numerous is a visual artwork that integrates the dynamics of nature and the variations of order, guiding us into a fluid world. By envisioning the movement of air in different environments, it showcases the gentleness and ferocity, demonstrating the rhythmicity and instability brought forth by the wind. The spirals of wind, the cycles of tides, and the fractal variations of geometric shapes merge to present a peculiar harmony. Transforming the infinite possibilities interwoven with nature and order into abstract visual aesthetics, allowing the audience to continuously explore the endless mysteries and rules within immersion.
Temporal
Canada 39 minutes | Dir. Jean-François Ethier & Dominic St-Amant
Fleeing imminent death from an incurable disease, an astronaut takes refuge in a slower space-time continuum in the hope of returning to see his young daughter grown to adulthood.
Session 9: Fabulous Fulldome | Sunday | 6 to 8:15pm
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Demo:Dome
Taiwan 9 minutes | dir. Chuang Ho
Domes have unique features like immersion, pressure, directional sound, and visuals, and letting audiences choose their perspective. Beyond these, many aspects are worth exploring.
Chuang Ho with artist Yuchi Hsiao to explore the unique visual style of domes. Demo:Dome is a series of short, experimental, and humorous pieces aimed at inspiring new storytelling methods and fresh ideas for dome visuals.
Cosmic Rhythms
USA 16 minutes | dir. Xavier Núñez
Action Lines Media, The Joffrey Ballet, and the Adler Planetarium present a new, cutting-edge collaboration of Cosmic Rhythms. Featuring Adler astronomers' expertise, breathtaking imagery, and bold choreography by Joffrey Ballet dancer Xavier Nuñez, Cosmic Rhythms takes audiences on a mesmerising journey through the cosmos.
Alisin
USA 7 minutes | dir. Kevin Saunders Hayes
Listen up.
The voices in your head are right, and everything you know about Wonderland is wrong!
AliSin is a music-driven experience that takes you on an immersive adventure to all the music, madness and mayhem of Wonderland… only this isn’t the Wonderland you know. At least not yet.
AliSin is a twisted new take on Alice in Wonderland – it’s like a Backstage Pass to a bizarro version of the Taylor Swift Eras Tour, inspired by Edward Scissorhands… that had a baby with Rocky Horror, Princess Bride, and Spinal Tap.
AliSin sends you tumbling down the rabbit hole with an exhilarating mix of music, film and animation, served up with a pinch of mischief, a healthy dose of anarchy and a whole lot of attitude.
2025 Dome Under Film Festival Awards Ceremony
The Dome Under Festival Jury will present five awards for Best Science Film, Best Children’s Film, Best Narrative Film, Best Art Film and Best Short Film (approximately 15 mins).
Spark: The Universe in Us
Germany 46 minutes | dir. Rocco Helmchen & Johannes Kraas
Impossible Space is an odyssey into the cosmos. A symphonic journey through real and artificial visual worlds, inspired by the spirit of science and discovery. This show interprets ‘outer space’ as more than just the night sky universe. Everything is space: it also unfolds in our everyday lives, within our brains, in a computer algorithm or in the unimaginably small building blocks of reality itself. These themes are artistically reimagined and adapted to create a unique audiovisual experience.
The original music is closely coupled to the visuals and fuses epic orchestral film score with electronic synth-driven minimalism, ranging from moving melodic motives to transforming beats and vast, expansive soundscapes. It always aims to guide and emotionally engage, to transform each visual into a vivid and tangible world that might even exist somewhere within the infinite stretches of the universe. The imagery ranges from fractal-mathematical nebulae to envisioned planets, from strangely (un)familiar AI-generated dimensions to nature on earth, and from abstract depictions of reality back to human shapes: A vortex of color, light, and sound inviting the audience on a fascinating ride through a profoundly impossible space.
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