# Prospect (film)
**Prospect** is a 2018 American science fiction film directed and written by Zeek Earl and Christopher Caldwell, in which a teenage girl and her father travel to a remote alien moon to harvest valuable gems and are forced into a fight for survival against rival prospectors.[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/prospect_2018) It premiered at the 2018 SXSW Film Festival, where it won the Adam Yauch Hörnblowér Award, and received a limited theatrical release on November 2, 2018.[2](https://cinegraph.org/movies/prospect-2018) • [1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/prospect_2018) Critics have described it as a space western built on character and setting rather than special effects.[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/prospect_2018)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Directors and writers | Zeek Earl and Christopher Caldwell; Earl also served as cinematographer[3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7946422/fullcredits/) |
| Premiere and award | SXSW Film Festival 2018; won the Adam Yauch Hörnblowér Award[2](https://cinegraph.org/movies/prospect-2018) |
| Release | Limited theatrical release November 2, 2018; streaming release March 8, 2019; distributed by Gunpowder & Sky[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/prospect_2018) |
| Budget | $4 million[4](https://www.tomsguide.com/entertainment/streaming/forget-big-budget-sci-fi-this-gritty-usd4m-movie-starring-pedro-pascal-is-an-underrated-masterpiece) |
| Principal cast | Sophie Thatcher (Cee), Pedro Pascal (Ezra), Jay Duplass (Damon), Andre Royo (Oruf), Sheila Vand (Inumon), Anwan Glover (Mikken)[3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7946422/fullcredits/) |
| Critical scores | 89% Tomatometer from 54 reviews; Metascore 68 from 8 critic reviews[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/prospect_2018) • [5](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/prospect/) |
| Box office | $22,777 worldwide, all from a United Arab Emirates release beginning January 3, 2019[6](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt7946422/) |
## Spoilers
### Plot and setting
Cee ([Sophie Thatcher](https://www.edgepedia.org/sophie-thatcher)) and her father Damon ([Jay Duplass](https://www.edgepedia.org/jay-duplass)) travel to a remote alien moon under contract to harvest a large deposit of valuable gems hidden in the depths of the moon's toxic forest.[7](https://tubitv.com/movies/100004593/prospect) The gems, called aurelacs, are found inside slimy pods that must be handled with care or they explode.[8](https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2018/11/sci-fi-stunner-prospect-values-small-stories-in-a-galaxy-far-far-away/) A malfunction forces their ship to land off course, and the pair must traverse the hazardous terrain on foot toward a lucrative dig site known as the queen's lair.[9](https://www.tomsguide.com/entertainment/hulu/the-best-pedro-pascal-movie-you-probably-havent-seen-is-now-on-hulu-and-its-a-gripping-sci-fi-thriller)
Other prospectors roam the wilderness, and the job turns into a struggle to survive.[7](https://tubitv.com/movies/100004593/prospect) Among them is the smooth-talking Ezra ([Pedro Pascal](https://www.edgepedia.org/pedro-pascal)), whose conflicting interests make the mission volatile and unpredictable.[9](https://www.tomsguide.com/entertainment/hulu/the-best-pedro-pascal-movie-you-probably-havent-seen-is-now-on-hulu-and-its-a-gripping-sci-fi-thriller) After an initial conflict, Cee continues her path with Ezra, who promises to protect her and help her leave the moon.[10](https://as.com/meristation/cine/prospect-cuando-pedro-pascal-cuido-de-una-nina-previo-a-the-last-of-us-r/)
## From short film to feature
The feature grew out of a short film that the directors funded through a [Kickstarter](https://www.edgepedia.org/kickstarter) campaign begun in 2012, whose pitch promised to capture the "texture" of *2001*, *Blade Runner*, and the original *Star Wars* with custom props and costumes rather than digital effects.[8](https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2018/11/sci-fi-stunner-prospect-values-small-stories-in-a-galaxy-far-far-away/) The short raised more than $21,000 and debuted at SXSW 2014.[10](https://as.com/meristation/cine/prospect-cuando-pedro-pascal-cuido-de-una-nina-previo-a-the-last-of-us-r/) After the short's online release drew attention from Hollywood, producer Dan Balgoyen, a partner of [Chris Weitz](https://www.edgepedia.org/chris-weitz) at Depth of Field, reached out to the filmmakers.[11](https://www.hammertonail.com/interviews/prospect-interview/)
The directors, college friends from a creative-writing program in Seattle who learned filmmaking through commercial production, developed the universe continuously for roughly six years, from the short film through the feature.[11](https://www.hammertonail.com/interviews/prospect-interview/) They built extensive background material, working out the economics and governments of places never shown on screen, and gave even briefly seen characters backstories, home planets, and cultural connections.[8](https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2018/11/sci-fi-stunner-prospect-values-small-stories-in-a-galaxy-far-far-away/)
## Production and locations
The alien forest was filmed in the [Hoh Rainforest](https://www.edgepedia.org/hoh-rainforest) on Washington's Olympic Peninsula, the same location used for both the short and the feature; the directors called it their "Green Moon" forest.[11](https://www.hammertonail.com/interviews/prospect-interview/) Reviews note a mix of practical locations in a damp Northwestern forest with some psychedelic digital backdrops.[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/prospect_2018) The film relies on practical effects, and the helmet-heavy scenes constrained the shooting schedule: as Earl put it, "you might get 12 takes, but we're in helmets that are hard to breathe in, you get four takes."[8](https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2018/11/sci-fi-stunner-prospect-values-small-stories-in-a-galaxy-far-far-away/)
Sophie Thatcher was found through a nationwide casting search; she was one of the first tapes the directors saw and, in their words, no one ever topped her.[11](https://www.hammertonail.com/interviews/prospect-interview/) [Andre Royo](https://www.edgepedia.org/andre-royo) and Anwan Glover, both alumni of *The Wire*, a series the directors admired, were offered their parts directly.[11](https://www.hammertonail.com/interviews/prospect-interview/) The score is by Daniel L.K. Caldwell, with editing by Paul Frank.[3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7946422/fullcredits/)
## Reception
The film holds an 89% Tomatometer based on 54 reviews and a 73% Popcornmeter from more than 1,000 audience ratings on Rotten Tomatoes, and a Metascore of 68 on Metacritic, where 6 of 8 critic reviews were positive and 2 mixed.[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/prospect_2018) • [5](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/prospect/) The Rotten Tomatoes critics consensus reads: "Fueled by character development and setting instead of special effects, *Prospect* is a sci-fi story whose style is defined, and enriched, by its limitations."[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/prospect_2018)
Reviewers repeatedly placed the film in a Western tradition. The Ringer's Miles Surrey wrote that its lawless pursuit of gems is akin to an interstellar gold rush, with Pascal's character fitting the charming gunslinger archetype.[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/prospect_2018) The Houston Chronicle's Cary Darling called it a "defiantly lo-fi" throwback that does not need a Marvel movie's worth of CGI, and the [San Francisco Chronicle](https://www.edgepedia.org/san-francisco-chronicle) praised its "lived-in, working-class vibe at odds with so much of the gleaming, brave new world that is the science-fiction cliché."[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/prospect_2018) • [5](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/prospect/) The Austin Chronicle scored it 89 and predicted it would land on lists of underrated genre films.[5](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/prospect/) RogerEbert.com's Nick Allen, giving 3 of 4 stars, wrote that the film exemplifies the immersive potential of practical filmmaking.[12](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/prospect-2018)
Commercially, the film earned $22,777 worldwide, all from a [United Arab Emirates](https://www.edgepedia.org/united-arab-emirates) theatrical release that opened January 3, 2019; [Box Office Mojo](https://www.edgepedia.org/box-office-mojo) lists no domestic gross.[6](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt7946422/) The film is available on Disney+ and Hulu in the United States.[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/prospect_2018)
## Style and legacy
The film's aesthetic comes from analog detail: the heroes' budget spacecraft carries cheap CRT displays punctuated by handwritten notes, and the moon has a dream-like, swampy atmosphere.[8](https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2018/11/sci-fi-stunner-prospect-values-small-stories-in-a-galaxy-far-far-away/) [Ars Technica](https://www.edgepedia.org/ars-technica) described it as a small story set in a galaxy far, far away, relegating its thought-out galactic economics and trade regulations to the background.[8](https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2018/11/sci-fi-stunner-prospect-values-small-stories-in-a-galaxy-far-far-away/) Thatcher's performance traces Cee's transition from book-reading teenager to hardened survivor capable of holding a rifle or stitching a wound, and Caldwell credited her with carrying the film: "she killed it, and in many cases she saved our ass."[8](https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2018/11/sci-fi-stunner-prospect-values-small-stories-in-a-galaxy-far-far-away/)
In later years the film has been described as a cult favorite, and it is often cited as an early Pedro Pascal role in which he protects a young charge, before *The Mandalorian* and *[The Last of Us](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-last-of-us-tv-series)* made that dynamic his signature.[10](https://as.com/meristation/cine/prospect-cuando-pedro-pascal-cuido-de-una-nina-previo-a-the-last-of-us-r/) • [4](https://www.tomsguide.com/entertainment/streaming/forget-big-budget-sci-fi-this-gritty-usd4m-movie-starring-pedro-pascal-is-an-underrated-masterpiece)
## References
1. [Prospect (2018), Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/prospect_2018)
2. [Prospect, Cinegraph](https://cinegraph.org/movies/prospect-2018)
3. [Prospect (2018) Full cast & crew, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7946422/fullcredits/)
4. [Forget big budget sci-fi: This gritty $4M movie starring Pedro Pascal is an underrated masterpiece, Tom's Guide](https://www.tomsguide.com/entertainment/streaming/forget-big-budget-sci-fi-this-gritty-usd4m-movie-starring-pedro-pascal-is-an-underrated-masterpiece)
5. [Prospect Reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/prospect/)
6. [Prospect (2018), Box Office Mojo](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt7946422/)
7. [Prospect (2018), Tubi](https://tubitv.com/movies/100004593/prospect)
8. [Sci-fi stunner Prospect values small stories in a galaxy far, far away, Ars Technica](https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2018/11/sci-fi-stunner-prospect-values-small-stories-in-a-galaxy-far-far-away/)
9. [The best Pedro Pascal movie you (probably) haven't seen is now on Hulu, Tom's Guide](https://www.tomsguide.com/entertainment/hulu/the-best-pedro-pascal-movie-you-probably-havent-seen-is-now-on-hulu-and-its-a-gripping-sci-fi-thriller)
10. ['Prospect': Cuando Pedro Pascal cuidó de una niña previo a 'The Last Of Us', AS Meristation](https://as.com/meristation/cine/prospect-cuando-pedro-pascal-cuido-de-una-nina-previo-a-the-last-of-us-r/)
11. [A Conversation with Chris Caldwell and Zeek Earl (PROSPECT), Hammer to Nail](https://www.hammertonail.com/interviews/prospect-interview/)
12. [Prospect movie review & film summary, RogerEbert.com](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/prospect-2018)
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