Synopsis
After an extraterrestrial attack devastates a space colony and a military base, a group of survivors escapes aboard the research vessel Magellan. A mysterious hyperspace event carries them to a remote ice planet, where they discover an ancient alien intelligence, a hidden underground network, and clues suggesting that their arrival may be part of a much larger cosmic plan.
Factoids & Trivia
- Ice Planet was produced as a pilot for a planned science-fiction television series rather than as a completely self-contained feature. The series was never produced.
- The film was a Canadian-German co-production developed by H5B5 Media, the German company associated with the television program Welt der Wunder.
- Production took place in a Munich-area industrial hall covering more than 5,000 square meters. The sets used construction foam, Styrofoam, Plexiglas, and approximately six tons of artificial snow.
- Three types of artificial snow were used: cellulose, starch, and polyethylene. The starch-based material looked especially convincing but could begin sticking together under the heat of the studio lights.
- Sets were reused during production. After Plexiglas ice surfaces were removed from a large ice-cave set, the same space was transformed into another alien environment.
- The spaceship interiors were built from foamed prefabricated sections. A green screen filled the Magellan's large viewing screen before computer-generated space imagery was added.
- The production included several visual jokes aimed at German science-fiction fans. An old iron appears among the equipment in the laboratory, referencing the classic television series Raumpatrouille Orion.
- Although the production was based in Germany, the film was shot in English with an international crew. The project was conceived as an attempt to create a German science-fiction series with international appeal.
- A television continuation was later announced in 2005, with Michael Ironside attached to the planned series. The follow-up never reached production.