An interesting documentary short, by Charles and Ray Eames, a husband and wife team who from the 1950s to the 1970s made many documentaries involving scientific themes. This one is from 1977, though it is an improved version of a previous short made by the directors in 1968. The film starts with a picnic in a Chicago park near Lake Michigan, We see a blanket in the park, where we see food, a man dozing off, and a woman (probably his partner) apparently reading. Then the camera starts pulling off the scene, moving every ten seconds to a point ten times farther. As the camera moves up, we soon see the city of Chicago, the great Lakes, the United States, then Planet Earth, then the solar system, the Milky Way, nearby galaxies
By the time we reach the edge of the universe (or at least what in 1976 was believed to be the edge), we have moved a distance equal to 10 to the power of 24 from the couple by the lakeside. Then we are back to the couple in the picnic, and we take the opposite path, as we start zooming in every ten seconds to a scene ten times smaller: we get to the skin of the man, the cells, the DNA inside, the atoms. By the time we reach the quarks inside the atoms, we have gotten to 10 to the power of -15. By the way, I once heard or read that humans were more or less in the intermediate position between the universe at its largest and the universe at its smallest. This is not exactly so, according to this documentary, though of course improved scientific knowledge in the time since might have changed a bit these numbers.
10 Reviews
My Only Criticism Is the Pacing
Hitchcoc16 May 2019
I would have liked the filmmakers to have slowed it down a bit more to give us time to gain more perspective. Nevertheless, this is a highly enjoyable trip through relativity. Some of the animation is a bit simplistic, but the effect it has on one is quite startling..
Wow...
planktonrules6 September 2009
I agree with dynamite_xi--for a 1970s film, the animation is absolutely stunning. Even today with all our advances, such a film would be very impressive. It left me wondering how they managed to make such a professional looking thing with relatively simple technology.
The concept of the film is very simple and is one you could imagine being used by a science or math teacher to explain about the size of the universe, the size of atoms or about mathematical powers. It starts with a couple lying on a blanket in a park in Chicago and begins pulling back step by step to the power of 10. In other words, starting at the couple, the camera goes to 10 meters square, then 100, etc. until the solar system becomes a speck and beyond. Just how small and insignificant we all are is very well explained. Then, once it makes a return journey, then it goes to the negative 10 power--going deeper and deeper inside the human body to the subatomic level.
While this is not a particularly "fun" film, it's very educational and tops when it comes to animation. I am impressed.
The concept of the film is very simple and is one you could imagine being used by a science or math teacher to explain about the size of the universe, the size of atoms or about mathematical powers. It starts with a couple lying on a blanket in a park in Chicago and begins pulling back step by step to the power of 10. In other words, starting at the couple, the camera goes to 10 meters square, then 100, etc. until the solar system becomes a speck and beyond. Just how small and insignificant we all are is very well explained. Then, once it makes a return journey, then it goes to the negative 10 power--going deeper and deeper inside the human body to the subatomic level.
While this is not a particularly "fun" film, it's very educational and tops when it comes to animation. I am impressed.
Amazing for a 70's film
dynamite_xi8 September 2002
This is a really interesting film about how large the universe is and how powers of ten become so drastically distant.
It starts out by showing a couple at a picnic in Chicago. It then shows an overhead shot a meter up of the man lying down on the picnic blanket. It then proceeds to zoom out by increasing the distance by a power of ten every ten seconds; 10 to the first meters, 10 to the second meters, 10 to the third meters, and so on.
Before long the viewer is above the earth, then the solar system, then the galaxy, then much of the visible universe. The viewer is projected back forward by decreasing the powers of ten every two seconds.
After a while the picnic scene is displayed again, but it doesn't stop there. The view returns to the regular speed and goes into the negative powers; ten to the negative first meter, ten to the negative second meter, and so on. The viewer is zoomed into the man's hand, and ends up zooming into a single proton in an atom.
I first saw this at an observatory, and I recently saw it again in Chemistry class. I recommend it to anyone.
It starts out by showing a couple at a picnic in Chicago. It then shows an overhead shot a meter up of the man lying down on the picnic blanket. It then proceeds to zoom out by increasing the distance by a power of ten every ten seconds; 10 to the first meters, 10 to the second meters, 10 to the third meters, and so on.
Before long the viewer is above the earth, then the solar system, then the galaxy, then much of the visible universe. The viewer is projected back forward by decreasing the powers of ten every two seconds.
After a while the picnic scene is displayed again, but it doesn't stop there. The view returns to the regular speed and goes into the negative powers; ten to the negative first meter, ten to the negative second meter, and so on. The viewer is zoomed into the man's hand, and ends up zooming into a single proton in an atom.
I first saw this at an observatory, and I recently saw it again in Chemistry class. I recommend it to anyone.
A Film That Made Me Think.
THXboy20 December 2002
I walked away from seeing this short film very surprised.
A very scientific and mathematically related movie, Powers Of Ten can be classified as one of Charles and Ray Eames' most brilliant and campy short films.
This movie shows how small we are in the universe as well as how big we are. This film might be nine minutes long, but everything blends in well for the short time limit.
This is also a good film for students who have just learned about astronomy and cellular functioning. It will leave them surprised and shattered about this film as much as I was.
Phil Morrison's excited narrative during this movie as well as the campy Moog background music made me think of this as a film to get people scared about the universe. It might not SCARE you, but it will leave you astounded.
Also, for a film about the universe, it must have at least some special effects. It does, but everything seems like one dimension. The special effects were not cheesy, yet I was dumbfounded that anyone can obtain pictures of everything dealing with the universe in 1977.
All in all, Powers Of Ten is a short film for any person who is interested in the paranormal, universal life, or even the universe in general. Ray and Charles Eames's style isn't for everyone, so be forewarned before you watch this. If you are in the mood for something completely different from your average short film, then feel free to see this short film on the "Films Of Charles and Ray Eames Collection Volume One". You won't be disappointed!
A very scientific and mathematically related movie, Powers Of Ten can be classified as one of Charles and Ray Eames' most brilliant and campy short films.
This movie shows how small we are in the universe as well as how big we are. This film might be nine minutes long, but everything blends in well for the short time limit.
This is also a good film for students who have just learned about astronomy and cellular functioning. It will leave them surprised and shattered about this film as much as I was.
Phil Morrison's excited narrative during this movie as well as the campy Moog background music made me think of this as a film to get people scared about the universe. It might not SCARE you, but it will leave you astounded.
Also, for a film about the universe, it must have at least some special effects. It does, but everything seems like one dimension. The special effects were not cheesy, yet I was dumbfounded that anyone can obtain pictures of everything dealing with the universe in 1977.
All in all, Powers Of Ten is a short film for any person who is interested in the paranormal, universal life, or even the universe in general. Ray and Charles Eames's style isn't for everyone, so be forewarned before you watch this. If you are in the mood for something completely different from your average short film, then feel free to see this short film on the "Films Of Charles and Ray Eames Collection Volume One". You won't be disappointed!
this is one movie that truly humbles you
lee_eisenberg6 March 2012
You might think that you live on a pretty big planet. Well, as "Powers of Ten" shows, Earth is nearly atom-sized compared to the universe. Starting by showing some picnickers in Chicago, the scene zooms out showing squares, each one ten times larger than the previous one, extending all the way to the outer reaches of the known universe...before reversing and zooming in on the man's hand. This documentary, directed by Charles and Ray Eames, just goes to show how tiny we really are, and that the universe is truly more massive than we can ever truly imagine. This topic is one of the first steps towards understanding physics, but above all, it humbles you. Really good one.
Conceptualization, artistry, and science
Polaris_DiB28 February 2008
Warning: Spoilers
Descriptions of physical properties of very massive or very small objects beyond the scope of human reference is actually more abstract than the simple reading of numbers helps demonstrate. This film (a remake of an earlier film by the same makers) attempts to provide a better framework with which to describe things that humans cannot see with their naked eyes by basically zooming in and out of a fixed point to provide new perspective.
The foundation of the film is a couple of picnickers inhabiting a frame of ten meters squared. It then zooms out to provide the same image multiplied by a length varied by an increasing power of ten: 10^n at increasing intervals. The object of the zoom is to show that things that are really massive are in fact really really massive or wow incredibly think about it gigantically massive and so on as even the first powers of ten (10^2 through 10^3) provide extremely different images of movement/coordinates/bodies until the powers of ten go past even star systems to galaxies and quasars.
Then, of course, the opposite is done, as the powers of ten dwindle (10^-n) and we get increasingly small samples of the same frame, until we reach the atomic level and even breach past the electrons into nuclii. This demonstration is, unfortunately, somewhat less easy to "see" what is going on because, of course, after a certain point the zoom becomes animated and the animation of various levels of biological material is more difficult to seamlessly incorporate than different levels of star movements and the like. At points during the zoom-in things seem to fade more and blend, causing a sense of dissonance as to a finer or delicate point--the zoom-in isn't nearly as easy to conceptualize as the zoom-out.
Overall, science and artistry mingle to help create a framework with which to understand terms and concepts that become rote stock for scientists and conceptual artists. As the language of science develops to incorporate new ideas, it is easy for those terms to be abused through misunderstandings of the concepts they represent. The purpose of this film is to give a more plastic image construction of a term that for the most part is not often appropriately visualized by the lay person.
--PolarisDiB
The foundation of the film is a couple of picnickers inhabiting a frame of ten meters squared. It then zooms out to provide the same image multiplied by a length varied by an increasing power of ten: 10^n at increasing intervals. The object of the zoom is to show that things that are really massive are in fact really really massive or wow incredibly think about it gigantically massive and so on as even the first powers of ten (10^2 through 10^3) provide extremely different images of movement/coordinates/bodies until the powers of ten go past even star systems to galaxies and quasars.
Then, of course, the opposite is done, as the powers of ten dwindle (10^-n) and we get increasingly small samples of the same frame, until we reach the atomic level and even breach past the electrons into nuclii. This demonstration is, unfortunately, somewhat less easy to "see" what is going on because, of course, after a certain point the zoom becomes animated and the animation of various levels of biological material is more difficult to seamlessly incorporate than different levels of star movements and the like. At points during the zoom-in things seem to fade more and blend, causing a sense of dissonance as to a finer or delicate point--the zoom-in isn't nearly as easy to conceptualize as the zoom-out.
Overall, science and artistry mingle to help create a framework with which to understand terms and concepts that become rote stock for scientists and conceptual artists. As the language of science develops to incorporate new ideas, it is easy for those terms to be abused through misunderstandings of the concepts they represent. The purpose of this film is to give a more plastic image construction of a term that for the most part is not often appropriately visualized by the lay person.
--PolarisDiB
Physics meets biology
Horst_In_Translation9 October 2013
Warning: Spoilers
And neither subject was a great favorite of mine back in school, so maybe that is why I can't appreciate this short film as much as I would have liked to. It runs for 9 minutes and was shot by Charles Eames and his wife back in the 1970s. At first we see a picnic and then the camera moves out into space faster and faster, so we see planets, the solar system etc. On the side you see the distance, but it quickly turns into dimensions you can't really make a difference when it's for example 10²³ or 10³².
Later it goes back to earth and moves into the picnicker's hand as we see the cell life and have it explained in detail. One big problem I had with this short was the narration. While it's way too basic in the first half, basically only explains exactly what we see and what we know anyway, it seems to want to make up for that and becomes downright scientific in the second half. While you think about the last sentence, he's already two sentences further and it's just impossible to follow if you're not a studied biologist. All in all, I can't really recommend this short film. i'm a bit surprised, it's that popular.
Later it goes back to earth and moves into the picnicker's hand as we see the cell life and have it explained in detail. One big problem I had with this short was the narration. While it's way too basic in the first half, basically only explains exactly what we see and what we know anyway, it seems to want to make up for that and becomes downright scientific in the second half. While you think about the last sentence, he's already two sentences further and it's just impossible to follow if you're not a studied biologist. All in all, I can't really recommend this short film. i'm a bit surprised, it's that popular.
Possibly the greatest animated film ever.
freakybuttrue13 October 2004
Never before has such grand ideas been explained so cleanly and perfectly. This is a master piece that goes beyond film and animation and goes further to show our place in the universe. A scene starts on a picnic and then the shot zooms out x10 at each second: it leaves the picnic, show all of the harbor, Chicago, the Mid-west Earth and then into deep deep space. It's simplistic and the music is cheap and weird. But the scale has never been evaluated quite like this film. And a relative showing of the speed of light is amazing. This is an important film and was remade as a Imax movie using the latest CG, which is also breathtaking, but all the credit must go the the Eames couple.
Powers of Ten
tieman648 July 2010
Warning: Spoilers
Interesting experimental film which opens with an overhead shot of a couple picnicking in a park and then slowly zooms out, our virtual camera increasing its zoom distance by a power of ten every ten seconds.
Through the earth's atmosphere and beyond the solar system we go, escaping our galaxy and the visible universe. Nebulae, stars, solar systems and galaxies flash by, until our camera reverses its course and we're propelled, very suddenly, back toward earth.
After a while the picnic scene is displayed again, but the camera doesn't stop there. The viewer is zoomed into the hand of a relaxing man, gliding deeper and deeper inside the human body until we reach the subatomic level. Like planets, these atoms, protons and neutrons zoom by, the film finally pausing on the image of a quark cluster.
8/10 – A very influential little film. "Cosmic Zoom", a similar short, was released the same year. Such experimental films seem to have been inspired by the space race and the first moon landing. Note- this film was made in 1968, not 1977 (as wrongly claimed by IMDb).
Through the earth's atmosphere and beyond the solar system we go, escaping our galaxy and the visible universe. Nebulae, stars, solar systems and galaxies flash by, until our camera reverses its course and we're propelled, very suddenly, back toward earth.
After a while the picnic scene is displayed again, but the camera doesn't stop there. The viewer is zoomed into the hand of a relaxing man, gliding deeper and deeper inside the human body until we reach the subatomic level. Like planets, these atoms, protons and neutrons zoom by, the film finally pausing on the image of a quark cluster.
8/10 – A very influential little film. "Cosmic Zoom", a similar short, was released the same year. Such experimental films seem to have been inspired by the space race and the first moon landing. Note- this film was made in 1968, not 1977 (as wrongly claimed by IMDb).
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