We generally associate the idea of film with mass viewership, since most of the films we see (especially before the rise of streaming), would be blockbusters which we’re watching with several hundred other people, forming a small part of a global crowd of millions who watch the film in question.

With avant-garde films, however, the total viewership of any film is likely to be far lower, as their experimental, non-linear nature decreases their palatable audience.

With 500h of Youtube videos uploaded every minute (Oberlo, 2023), it’s no surprise that many receive no views. (Estimates on this number are varying and difficult to pin down. It seems that a stable number is over 90% of videos never reaching 1000 views (Routenote, 2020)).

Astronaut.io is a website that finds and shows you videos that have never before been seen. It’s an enjoyable way to spend five minutes.

Today, you are an Astronaut. You are floating in inner space 100 miles above the surface of Earth. You peer through your window and this is what you see. You are people watching. These are fleeting moments.

These videos come from YouTube. They were uploaded in the last week and have titles like DSC 1234 and IMG 4321. They have almost zero previous views. They are unnamed, unedited, and unseen (by anyone but you).

Astronaut starts when you press GO. The video switches periodically. Click the button below the video to prevent the video from switching.

Astronaut.io

Access Astronaut.io here.