Dr. Topper Carew is bringing ‘This Little Light of Mine’ to space
Starting Tuesday, the night sky will begin to shine a little brighter. Roxbury filmmaker and “Martin” co-creator Dr. Topper Carew is sending his latest project, “This Little Light of Mine,” up to the International Space Station, where it will remain in orbit for all of February and parts of March. The payload containing the film will launch from Cape Canaveral, Fla., on Tuesday at 12:06 p.m.
“We need more light on the planet right now,” said Carew, the film’s director. “I just wanted to do something that could make a difference if it only impacts one person or two people or a hundred people.”
The eight-and-a-half-minute short film features choirs and children’s groups from around the world singing “This Little Light of Mine,” the iconic self-empowerment song often connoted with the Civil Rights Movement. As the ISS orbits around the Earth, viewers can stream the short on thislittlelightofmineinspace.com as it circles the globe 30-45 times a day.
Carew independently produced and financed the project, which limited its budget but allowed simplicity to shine through. “I just had to be straight ahead and rely on the power of the song and the earnestness of the children to convey a feeling that people could respond and relate to,” he said.
The song itself carries a deeply personal meaning for Carew. When he was 20 years old, he went to the South as a member of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, a collective of college students who organized civil rights demonstrations and voter registration campaigns. There, he listened to famed activist Fannie Lou Hamer lead his group in rallies, often featuring renditions of “This Little Light of Mine.”
“That song lived in my heart and in my spirit from that time on,” he said. “That song would give us courage and lift us and eradicate the fear.”
Though he’s long loved the song, his interest in space started more recently. Following the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, Carew began to glean some insight on the technology required for the project. From there, he got in touch with DreamUp, a division of Nanoracks, a company specializing in commercial space travel. This partnership allowed Carew to focus on creating the film while the logistics required to send it to the space station were handled in the background.
According to Carew, launching the payload ahead of Black History Month was not a part of the original plan, saying that was simply when NASA scheduled the project. However, that coincidence still carries weight for him.
“There is this belief in STEM technologies that children of color don’t believe they can be in those spaces, but they can be in those spaces,” he said. “I’m hoping this encourages that. I know when I went to Hollywood, once I got on the other side of the fence and got behind the scenes, I saw it was something far more simple to manage.”
With the launch of “This Little Light of Mine” and a “Martin” tribute at the 75th Emmy Awards, it’s been a whirlwind month for Carew. Through it all, he’s happy to still be creating work that resonates with people.
“I enjoy having ‘Martin’ as an aspect
‘I just wanted to do something that could make a difference if it only impacts one person or two people or a hundred people.’ DR. TOPPER CAREW
of my legacy, but I didn’t want that to be the end of my legacy,” he said. “I’m very blessed that at this stage of life, it’s still possible for me to bring some good energy to the planet.”