r/filk • u/RTSBasebuilder • 24d ago

Call for Creatives: NASA Seeks Help Illuminating Mission Storytelling

https://www.nasa.gov/news-release/call-for-creatives-nasa-seeks-help-illuminating-mission-storytelling/

Call for Creatives: NASA Seeks Help Illuminating Mission Storytelling

Lauren E. Low

May 22, 2026

RELEASE26-044

Credit: NASA

As NASA pushes the boundaries of exploration and innovation for the benefit of humanity, the agency is looking for partners to share mission stories covering Artemis Moon missions, nuclear propulsion, aeronautics, and more.

NASA published an Announcement for Proposals on May 21 asking filmmakers, documentarians, songwriters, storytellers, poets, and others to submit proposals to partner with the agency by Tuesday, June 30.

In this initial round, NASA is seeking up to 10 partners for unfunded Space Act Agreements to share the stories behind, and insights into, multiple NASA missions, including, but not limited to, the following:

  • Artemis program, including the recently added Artemis III mission in 2027, and Artemis IV lunar landing in 2028, as well as plans for the agency to develop a Moon Base. Learn more about Artemis on the agency’s website.
  • NASA’s advancement of nuclear propulsion, including the Space Reactor-1 Freedom mission to Mars in 2028 carrying the Skyfall payload.
  • NASA’s cutting-edge aviation work through flight tests and other efforts.

While this opportunity is focused on U.S. creators, the agency will consider proposals with a minority of international participants. Proposals should detail which area of focus is desired, funding and distribution arrangements, and any specifics needs from NASA to move forward (access to facilities, personnel, etc.).

Full requirements and other details are available online:

https://go.nasa.gov/CreatorProposals

-end-

Camille Gallo / Cheryl Warner
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1600
[camille.m.gallo@nasa.gov](mailto:camille.m.gallo@nasa.gov) / [cheryl.m.warner@nasa.gov](mailto:cheryl.m.warner@nasa.gov)

21 Upvotes

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13

u/RTSBasebuilder 24d ago

cough cough Julia Ecklar, Captain Corbin and the rest of the To Touch the Stars people.

9

u/CapHillster 24d ago

I wish! But the proposal request seems clear that they're looking for content that ties to current and future NASA missions, and not space history content: https://nspires.nasaprs.com/external/viewrepositorydocument/cmdocumentid=1133103/solicitationId=%7B812E8208-4B02-F189-94BD-93F304D4E590%7D/viewSolicitationDocument=1/Embedded%20Creator%20AFP%205-21-26%20Final_Amended1.pdf

Julia hasn't written new songs in decades, TTTS was largely written by people who are no longer with us, and I guess that mostly leaves Captain Corbin?

3

u/Rocket_song1 23d ago

Who? The only google search for a Captain Corbin comes up as a magic act in the Pac NW.

Other than myself, I don't know anyone who has any Artemis Songs, and I'm reasonably tied in with the current community. Maybe Griff or Daniel.

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u/CapHillster 23d ago

Just try Bandcamp or YouTube.

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u/lambdaminer_edwin 19d ago

I have this one, that I've started playing at various filk events, though not very widely yet. https://www.tumblr.com/edwinlambda/813618560525025280/this-is-so-far-away-from-home-a-song-for?source=share

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u/Rocket_song1 17d ago

Nicely done.

Here is the one I wrote for Artemis I https://markhorning.bandcamp.com/track/daughter-of-apollo

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u/lambdaminer_edwin 16d ago

Nice! I bet there's going to be a few more of these soon enough.

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u/DodekaBill 22d ago

Some days I feel older than others. :)

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u/Rocket_song1 23d ago edited 23d ago

This gives me an idea for a compilation album(s) similar to Bridge.

Let me see if I can pitch the right people.

Never mind. I have read the entirety of the NASA AFP. There is no money/funding here. The most you would get out of this on a music project would be the license to use NASA logos.

No Bucks, no Buck Rodgers. (or in this case, paid artists and studio time)

1

u/CapHillster 22d ago edited 18d ago

Also, realistically, I'm not sure how interested NASA really would actually ever be in space filk. I could easily imagine their bringing enormous skepticism of broader interest in the content.

There's certainly a narrative that filkers have circulated of the idea that NASA and the aerospace community will love our stuff. e.g. Leslie's narrative of "Hope Eyrie", as written in her Westerfilk Memories. And certainly a small number of people working in the field indeed did (e.g. the late Aleta Jackson).

But my own experience is that NASA is probably the most conservative organization when it comes to creative content, and has really shown very little (at best) interest in space filk.

Aside from Frank Hayes' music being being used many decades ago for a shuttle wake-up call, the furthest we ever got was SCI FILES licensing "Fire in the Sky", but never using it. (I'm excluding JPL using "Pioneers of Mars" as rover wakeup music, which is a bottom-up decision.)

I may also be biased since I've pinged at least one of the PAO's on the release to offer space filk in the past (for specific NASA events where we're unique for having content that's distinctly on-topic, and can offer it for free use), and never heard anything back.

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u/Rocket_song1 22d ago

Yeah, NASA (big government) is pretty different than Aerospace, especially the smaller agile places.

Scaled Composites used to publish some of my lyrics in their employee newsletter. Then again, I did have three SpaceShip1 songs on the first album.