Watch Gravity: Introduction to ANINGAAQ - A Short Film by Jonas Cuaron

Gravity: Introduction to ANINGAAQ - A Short Film by Jonas Cuaron is a companion piece to the 2013 blockbuster film Gravity, directed by Jonas Cuaron's father, Alfonso Cuaron. This short film tells the story of a lone Inuit fisherman named Aningaaq, who is stranded on a remote fjord in Greenland. He receives a distress call on his CB radio from Dr. Ryan Stone, the astronaut played by Sandra Bullock in the original film.

The events of the short film take place at the same time as the main events of Gravity. After a catastrophic debris field strikes their spacecraft, Ryan Stone is the sole survivor, adrift in space in a damaged spacecraft with limited oxygen. She repeatedly attempts to contact NASA and anyone else who might be able to help her. Finally, she hears a faint transmission on her radio that sounds like a voice speaking in an unfamiliar language. She tries to respond in English, but gets no reply. She continues to try, hoping that whoever is on the other end of the line can help her.

Meanwhile, we see Aningaaq's daily life as a fisherman, tending to his sled dogs and catching fish in the fjord. He is surprised to hear the voice of a stranger speaking to him over his radio, but he cannot understand what she is saying. He tries to reply, speaking in his native Inuktitut, but it is clear that neither party understands the other.

Despite the language barrier, the two manage to communicate through gestures and sounds, and we see a heart-wrenching moment where Ryan listens to Aningaaq talking to his newborn child, their voices far apart in time and space, but connected by a shared humanity. The short film presents a powerful critique of the isolation and disconnection of modern life, and the way that technology can both bring us together and keep us apart.

Jonas Cuaron shot the short film on a shoestring budget, using local actors and non-actors in Greenland. He creates a powerful sense of place, capturing the stark beauty of the fjord and the everyday routines of the Inuit people who live there. The minimalist score by Steven Price is haunting, adding emotional weight to the simple but profound story being told.

Gravity: Introduction to ANINGAAQ is a potent reminder of the power of film to create empathy and understanding across cultures and languages. Watching it alongside Gravity, viewers gain a deeper appreciation for the incredible isolation and danger that Ryan Stone faces in space, and the human connections that sustain us even in the darkest moments. It is a short film that lingers in the mind long after viewing, a testament to the power of storytelling to connect us to one another.