Cosmic Zoom

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Published 2010-01-20

This film probes the infinite magnitude of space, and its reverse, the ultimate minuteness of matter. Animation art and animation camera achieve this journey to the farthest conceivable point of the universe and then into the tiniest particle of existence--an atom of a living human cell--with a freshness and clarity that would seem impossible with other means of exposition. Film without words.

Directed by Eva Szasz - 1968 | 8 min

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All Comments (21)

@CharlotteIssyvoo 12 years ago

Love love loved this as a kid. I used to show it at my birthday parties. I wasn't a very popular child.
@mikebasil4832 11 months ago

I'm even prouder to be a Canadian because of this very special Canadian short film. I first saw it as a kid when my parents rented it for my birthday. They had to rent it more than once since I enjoyed it so much. Thank you, Eva, and to everybody in the NFB who made Cosmic Zoom possible.
@DerUfo 3 years ago

The young man should have been credited for being in the short film.. Kudos to him, although he now is about 67 years of age.. and life has gone by.. and may he still get credited.. for he has been seen by thousands of people. and remembered.. but remains unknown. Thank you for playing your part in the making of this classic.
@AndrewBrown-em3ti 3 years ago

I too, vividly remember watching this on BBC2 in the UK as a child and being transfixed by the concept and the scale of everything the film shows. It’s still utterly absorbing now. Thank you for sharing it again.
@dwdeclare1965 2 years ago

first time i saw this was in about 1973 when i was around 8 years old. it was shown at the amphitheater at whistler's campground in jasper. i thought it was so cool, especially while watching it outside under the stars surrounded by mountains amid the sounds of nature. it really had a lasting impact on me.
@andybutler6968 4 years ago

Created in 1968. It starts on the Ottawa river outside of Ottawa, Canada. Note the tiny Canadian flag on the Parliament building. First saw this film in grade 5 or 6. It got me interested in science and 50 years later, it still amazes me. Now that I finally found it again, I need to get my grand-kids. Thank-you.
@colleenderby5805 8 years ago

I remember watching this as a kid living in England and being absolutely mesmerized. Thanks for posting!
@douglasbell6433 4 years ago

So glad to see this on YT! I haven't seen this since it was shown on Blue Peter back in the late 70s.
@kodiorne 10 years ago

Cosmic Zoom is a 1968 short film directed by Eva Szasz and produced by the National Film Board of Canada.
@sunilsatawlekar3972 5 years ago

This is truly a commendable effort at depicting the scale of our living and to humble our ego with knowledge and technology available in 1968.
@kaytherese 14 years ago

I saw this in 9th grade and it made such an impact on my life and now I have viewed it for only the second time - 34 years later!!! I am so thrilled to find it.
@Lyca31 7 years ago

I remember watching this as a kid of around 5 or 6 at school in England... we were all so amazed.. thanks for posting. I didn't realise it was that old.
@jonallaway2002 8 years ago

Thanks for posting - I've been hoping for years to see this again!
@dalekkiller 8 months ago

This was my favourite short film to watch on TV as a kid. It still creates a sense of awe in me to this day.
@jevonsafarik775 13 years ago

This is a real blast from the past. I saw this back in the days where we watched 16mm film projected in our classrooms at school. There is another film (a little more scientific) with the same theme, called "Powers of Ten". Thanks for posting this.
@packet1100 10 years ago

Saw this in November 1975, Palace Theater, Albany, NY,my first concert: New Riders of the Purple Sage. Have to say, seeing it again after all these years brings me right back to that place....
@roguemegabyte58674 2 years ago

Nostalgia... The music of the parts when we go back to 10^0 used to scare me (especially 6:51)
@koovar 11 years ago

yes me too saw this way back when i was about 10 years old never forgotten it im now 47 and wouldnt have found it if we didnt have the internet truly awesome
@SWLinPHX 1 year ago

I saw this as a freshman in an astronomy course at UCLA and it blew me away and gave me a lot to think about with regard to our (in)significance. It is the only thing I remember from that class.
@2001davebowman 12 years ago

THIS is why we keep coming back to Youtube. "Did you ever watch that film when you were at school which zooms out and in?" "Huh? What are you talking about?" (Two minutes of Googling later) "Here it is." I remember it very well from my high school days in the 1970's.