AAAS, Science Join Partnership with NYC’s Imagine Science Film Festival

When the curtain rises on the second annual Imagine Science Film Festival this fall in New York City, AAAS and the journal Science will be there as presenting sponsors as part of an effort to bring fascinating and entertaining science to the movie-going public.

The festival this year is slated to run from 15-24 October, with screenings in Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Queens, at a range of theaters, exhibit spaces, and education centers, including the New York Hall of Science.

"At AAAS and Science, one of our primary goals is encouraging public engagement with science," said Ian King, marketing director for AAAS. "Film is a really powerful medium for communicating scientific concepts, which is one of the reasons we’re so enthusiastic about working with Imagine Science Films. Our organizations share a core set of values, and we are proud to support their unique approach to making science accessible."

The Festival is the brainchild of Alexis Gambis, a cancer genetics researcher and filmmaker who earned a Ph.D. from Rockefeller University in 2008. He said that he is "thrilled" to have AAAS/Science as the festival’s presenting sponsor.

"It adds value to Imagine Science Films and will definitely encourage a greater number of films with credible, original and groundbreaking science to be savored by the general public," Gambis said.

Last October, during its inaugural run, the Imagine Science Film Festival screened 31 short films—both fiction and documentaries—over nine days in Manhattan and Brooklyn.

A sneak preview screening and concert to benefit the festival is scheduled for 9 September.

Imagine Science Films is a non-profit organization committed to promoting a high-level dialogue and collaboration between scientists and filmmakers, with the ultimate goal of making science accessible and stimulating to a broader audience.

Edward W. Lempinen

3 August 2009