For budding astronauts, dreamers of orbits and distant destinations.
The short film also invites us to think about parent-child relationships and the importance of memories that accompany us and support us during difficult times.
Understand the story, the theme, express your sensitivity and exercise your critical thinking.
The short film also invites us to think about parent-child relationships and the importance of memories that accompany us and support us during difficult times.
Before viewing, explain that the English title “One small step” means “one small step”.
In reference to the famous phrase that Neil Alden Armstrong (1930-2012) uttered on July 21, 1969 when he first set foot on the moon: “That's one small step for [a] man, one giant leap for mankind” (“one small step for man, one big step (or one giant leap) for humanity”.
1-Who is the main character in the film?
A young girl who we follow from childhood to adulthood.
2-What is his passion?
His passion is astronomy.
We understand this from the start of the film because the little girl, surrounded by magazines, drawings and models on astronomy, watches the takeoff of a rocket on TV. Even the shape of his room and the blue carpet evoke a planet. We can think that the little girl's dream is to go to the moon.
Note that the film begins off-camera:
We can guess what the little girl is looking at by her facial expression and by the sound of the TV that we cannot see.
To go further on the notion of off-camera, consult the Grammaire du cinéma educational file...
Astronomy, considered the oldest of sciences, is the science of observing the stars.
From Latin borrowed from ancient Greek, astronomía composed of ástron (star) and nómos (law).
3-In the second scene of the film, what clues confirm the little girl's passion?
The moon and a rocket are drawn on her six-year-old birthday cake.
His father gives him a pair of astronaut boots.
Students will learn the difference between astronaut (pilot or passenger of a spacecraft) and astronomer (scientist specializing in the study of astronomy). Note that the term astronaut is becoming more frequent than its two synonyms, cosmonaut (speaking of Russian pilots or passengers) and astronaut (speaking of the French).
4-What is dad's job?
He is a shoemaker.
5-Describe the granddaughter's dream (starting at 1 min 3 sec).
The little girl and her father travel into space aboard a cardboard box; They land on the moon and admire planet Earth.
6-The little girl grows up and goes to university. How does the relationship between the little girl and her father transform?
The little girl, caught up in her studies, pays less and less attention to her father; she no longer speaks to him when she comes home, she no longer eats with him. His father is sad but he understands the situation.
7-What is the first response to his application for the astronaut program?
Clarify that the English phrase “astronaut candidate program” at 3 min 9 s means in French “Candidate for the astronaut program”.
This is a negative answer. We don't see the letter but we understand it by the young girl's disappointed expression.
8-How does the young girl react to this negative response?
She loses courage and no longer wants to work (3 min 44 s).
9-At 3 min 55 s, What event, which we understand from the following scene, will turn the young girl's life upside down?
The death of his father. We understand this because the young girl is in a cemetery.
10-At 5:05, what does the granddaughter discover when she is tidying up the house?
A cardboard box in which her father kept all the shoes he made for her, even the six-year-old's birthday boots.
11-What is the granddaughter's reaction?
She is moved and remembers the kindness and tenderness of her father.
This gives him courage; she wants to work again (5 min 46 s).
12-How does the film end?
The girl passes her exam at the university and receives a positive response to her application for the astronaut program. She realizes her dream of walking on the moon.
13-And you, do you have a dream in particular? What would you like to do when you grow up?
Open response/debate.
Created with the support of the French Ministry of Education and the French National Center for Cinema and Animated Images (CNC).
Watching the film with the family, educational activities with parents at home and with teachers in class.
