2001: A Space Odyssey (film) and the 1964 New York World's Fair movie "To the Moon and Beyond", were very influential. According to biographer Vincent Lobrutto, "Universe" was a visual inspiration to Kubrick. The 29-minute film, which had also proved popular at NASA for its realistic portrayal of outer space, achieved "the standard of dynamic visionary realism that he was looking for." Wally Gentleman, one of the special effects artists on "Universe", worked briefly on "2001". Kubrick also asked "Universe" co-director Colin Low about animation camerawork, with Low recommending British mathematician Brian Salt, with whom Low and Roman Kroitor had previously worked on the 1957
Interpretations of 2001: A Space Odyssey in the film calls attention to the purpose of the satellites. James John Griffith, in a footnote in his book "Adaptations As Imitations: Films from Novels", wrote "I would wonder, for instance, how several critics, commenting on the match-cut that links humanity's prehistory and future, can identify—without reference to Clarke's novel—the satellite as a nuclear weapon". Arthur C. Clarke, in the TV documentary "2001: The Making of a Myth", described the bone-to-satellite sequence in the film, saying "The bone goes up and turns into what is supposed to be an orbiting space bomb, a weapon in space. Well, that isn't