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TAMPA, Fla. (FOX 13) - A new movie hitting more theaters this weekend features film that was overlooked in the National Archives for nearly 50 years. ‘Apollo 11’ recounts the 1969 space mission which landed men on the moon for the first time.
The film that was discovered is high quality, 70-millimeter film shot by NASA.
“It is just terrific to see this footage this many years later in such sharp, clear focus," offered space author and journalist John Bisney, who saw it in an IMAX theater earlier this week.
Brisney covered dozens of space missions and co-authored a new book called "Picturing Apollo 11.” He and co-author J.L. Pickering found hundreds of photos from the mission that weren't widely distributed.
Both the film and the book are just in time for this summer's 50th anniversary of the moon landing.
The film opened in IMAX last weekend and arrives in other theaters this weekend. Director Todd Douglas Miller weaves the story without narration using actual sound from 1969. It's a trip down memory lane for people who remember the moon landing.
At 21, Payton Barnwell doesn't remember, but it has her thinking.
"I think that's going to inspire a whole new generation," offered the mechanical engineering senior at Florida Polytechnic University.
She's had two space-related internships, including a stint in NASA's plant laboratory experimenting with food for deep space travel.
"SpaceX and Blue Origin and all these companies are moving into the Cape and all over the country trying to get us there faster. It's wonderful,” she said.
Bisney hopes his book and the film rekindle the spirit of 1969 when the whole world watched the Apollo 11 mission.
"To explore, go to new places, and find new information," he added. "That's what I hope this inspires."