Richard Garriott: Man on a Mission

Documentary Feature, Spotlight Premieres
D: Mike Woolf; with Richard Garriott

Space truly was the final frontier for video-game tycoon Garriott: the ultimate item on the Ultima creator’s bucket list of adventures he wanted to experience. The son of an astronaut, Garriott was determined to follow his father to the stars, even if it meant blowing his entire fortune. Which is essentially what he did, spending $30 million for a 12-day trip to the International Space Station in 2008. Former GSD&M copywriter Mike Woolf tracked his efforts, effectively capturing on film the punishing training Garriott had to undergo to realize his dream and how life beyond Earth can be at once awe-inspiring and prosaic. But that father-son bond is the heart of this doc, touched on lightly but affectingly, as when son speaks to father by radio from the heavens, a reversal of their roles 30 years earlier. A vicarious thrill for anyone who ever fantasized about becoming an astronaut.

Thursday, March 18, 2:30pm, Paramount

This article appears in March 19 • 2010.

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