National Geographic dropped its first trailer for “The Space Race” on Monday, a documentary charting the impact little-known Black men and women had on the early days of space exploration.
The project is directed by Diego Hurtado de Mendoza and Lisa Cortés.
“The Space Race” discloses experiences and stories from the unheard voices of the first Black individuals at Nasa who were involved with American space exploration. Centering on Guion Bluford (famous for becoming the first African American to fly in space), Ed Dwight and Charles Bolden, the doc showcases the history-making Black engineers, scientists and astronauts that previously were left out of our history books.
In the trailer, Bolden discusses the dilemmas of being a Black person interested in space travel because “nobody doing that stuff looked like me.”
“Very few people today even have a clue about Black people’s contribution to human space flight because they weren’t written in history books,” he said. “In the early days of the Civil Rights Movement, NASA wanted to show that they were engaged in equality for all.”
And while there were failures along the way, Bolden emphasized in the “Space Race” trailer that “representation becomes critically important to help us keep moving down that path … Black history is American history. We forget it at our peril.”
In addition, “The Space Race ” includes stories from barrier-breaking Black astronauts Ed Dwight and Victor Glover, along with other significant figures including Frederick Gregory, Bernard Harris, Leland Melvin, Arnaldo Tamayo Méndez and Jessica Watkin.
In addition to co-directing “The Space Race,” Mendoza served as cinematographer as well as producer alongside Cortés. Also attached as producers are Alexandra Bowen, Aly Parker, Mark Monroe and Keero Birla. Executive producers include Carolyn Berstein, Frank Marshall, Leland Melvin and Tony Rosenthal.
“The Space Race” was written by Mark Monroe and edited by Robert. A Martinez with music by Anna Drubich and Jongnic Bontemps.
“The Space Race” will air on National Geographic Feb. 12 and be available on Disney+ and Hulu streaming services Feb. 13.
Watch the full trailer in the video above.
