Signal Collection · Sci-Fi
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Synopsis
An astronaut spending their last day on Earth.
A science-fiction short directed by Pauliina Leskinen. A lone astronaut moves through an ordinary city — buses, bars, fairgrounds — on the last day before leaving it all behind. Suited up and slightly apart, taking in the small, strange textures of a world about to be left.
Details
Director Interview
Director Pauliina Leskinen on the making of My Last Day on Earth. Tap a question to read her answer.
It started at a very young age. I was part of a theatre club, and even then I loved helping other actors get into character. At school I was always organising performances, and whenever I had the chance, I’d turn assignments into short videos instead of written work. I was also lucky to have an older sister who was into photography, so I often went along to film behind-the-scenes videos at her shoots. Around the same time I went through a YouTube phase, which taught me a lot about storytelling and editing. Looking back, all those experiences naturally led me towards filmmaking.
My Last Day on Earth actually began as a music video before evolving into a short film. It was inspired by the poem Sudno, which explores the idea that sometimes dying can seem easier than living. I wanted to approach those themes in a more visual and metaphorical way rather than being too literal. The image of a lonely astronaut spending their final day wandering through London felt like an interesting way to tell that story.
The biggest challenge came after filming. Since the project started as a music video, we hadn’t recorded production sound, so when we decided to turn it into a short film we had to build the entire soundtrack from scratch. During production we also faced practical challenges, like finding an astronaut suit and figuring out how to film on the London Underground. Looking back, I’m really proud of how everyone came together to solve those problems.
Collaboration, without a doubt. I loved working with the entire team, and it reminded me how much filmmaking depends on trusting the people around you. It also helped me become more confident in my own decisions as a director. Learning to trust my instincts is something I’ll definitely carry into future projects.
I love seeing everything come together. Watching months of planning, writing and filming finally become a finished film is incredibly rewarding. It’s the moment when all the hard work starts to make sense.
I don’t really have one specific filmmaker that I look up to. I’m usually inspired more by individual films than directors. Some of my favourites are Close by Lukas Dhont, Black Swan by Darren Aronofsky, and Superman by James Gunn. They’re all very different, but each one has stayed with me for different reasons.
I’m currently developing my first feature film, Aurora Sun. It’s a science fiction drama about fatherhood, grief and hope, told through the story of a father trying to save his daughter in a dying world. It’s the most ambitious project I’ve worked on so far, and I’m really excited to keep developing it.
Director
Director
Pauliina Leskinen directed My Last Day on Earth, a science-fiction short following an astronaut through their final day on the planet. More on the director to come.

The One-Sheet
Produced by Meltem Orujova · A Pauliina Leskinen film
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