RSFF2024 Festival Films and Awards
The Raw Science Film Festival 2024 Awards
New York City, NY (October 8, 2024) — The 10th Raw Science Film Festival was Saturday, October 5, 2024 at Triad Theater New York.
Festival Teaser Trailer: https://youtu.be/PokGQ2gOvns?feature=shared
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The full slate of films selected for the 10th Raw Science Film Festival edition including Official Selections, Finalists, and Awards can be found at https://www.rawsciencefilmfestival.com/2024-films.
A selection of the films, programmed by film historian Betsy McLane, screened during the daytime at Triad Theater New York (158 W. 72nd St. New York, NY 10023) on Saturday, October 5th and Sunday, October 6th (62 Orchard Street 2 floor, Manhattan, NY 10002). The screenings were followed by a red carpet Awards Ceremony emceed by Kevin Grazier. The full 2-day event included film screenings, workshops, panels, live performances, including by Susaye Greene of the Supremes. Workshops include the “science of peak performance” by Carlos Salum, former tennis coach and current trainer of Formula One race car drivers.
The festival presented a slate of top new science films including Jury Award for Best Documentary Feature film I HOPE THIS HELPS! from actor/executive producer Matthew Modine and producer Adam Rackoff’s Cinco Dedos Peliculas production company. Daniel Freed created a humorous, genre-bending film that enlists Google's first artificial intelligence chatbot, Bard, to explore the promises and pitfalls of Artificial Intelligence.
“Artificial intelligence is the most important, life-altering technological advancement in modern human history. Full stop.” said Matthew Modine. "Science fiction literature, television shows, and movies have repeatedly presented stories that depict the multitude of potential dangers of artificial intelligence for all of us. As often happens, science fiction becomes science fact. And here we are. The A.I. tail wagging the A.I. dog. The gatekeepers of A.I. possess the power to alter and control human behavior in ways that were unimaginable just a half century ago. Daniel Freed’s new documentary film uses satire and whimsy to question whether or not the benefits of A.I. might outweigh the many risks. This is a film that needs to be seen.”
“This project began as an effort to bring more people into the conversation about how A.I. is changing the world we live in,” said Daniel Freed. “We are excited and honored to share it with the film fans and scientists at this year’s Raw Science Film Festival.”
The Memory of Darkness, Light, and Ice by Kathy Kasic won the Industry Award for Best Professional Documentary Feature. LIGO - Director's Cut on the discovery of Gravitational Waves was screened with Les Guthman accepting the Industry Award for Best Educational Media. Filmmakers Elizabeth Rosa Landau and Kimberly Arcand screened their film Listen to the Universe and accepted the Industry Award for Best New Media for their work presenting the sonification of NASA data. Katie Dellamaggiore’s film Small Town Universe won the Industry Award for Breakthrough in SciComm. Filmmaker Leo R. Douglas accepted the Industry Award for Best Amateur Documentary Short for Reimagining Queen Nanny of the Maroons.
First-time filmmaker Dr. Sarah Temkin accepted Jury Award for Best Documentary Short for the film 1001cuts. Filmmaker Matthew Ellenbogen accepted the Industry Award for Best Documentary Short for The Ecstasy of Microscopy. Ramon Larramendi, pioneer in Greenland and polar explorer, and Carlos Pitarch accepted the Industry Frontier Award for pushing the boundaries of extreme environment filmmaking in the documentary feature film Anori, Inuit Windsled. Argentinian filmmaker Ana Fraile and María Laura Ruggiero accepted an Industry Award for Best Depiction of a Scientific Principle for the film The Library of All Things. The dancer and professor Dr. Julia Basso accepted the Industry Award for Best Public Art for her work Epiphany Machine focusing on the body-brain connection and using movement to enhance brain function and physiology. Ada won Best Professional Animated Series by Elizabeth Cox, and Kirill Yeretsky. The series Human Footprint: The Urban Jungle screened as Jury Award winner for Best Professional Documentary Series. The film Mysteries of the Twilight Zone screened as Industry Award for Best Student Documentary Short. We Flow into the World, and the World Flows into Us – The Beauty of Blood Flow by Barnaby Steel and returning winning filmmaker Bianka Hofmann was screened as Industry Award for Best Animation.
Film producer Dr. Douglas Chin accepted the Industry Award for Best Pro-Social Media for the film Afghan Dreamers. Florence Pouya, former team captain for the Afghan Girls’ Robotics Team, provided remarks along with Bhumika Regmi of the Malala Fund. Malala and Ziauddin Yousafzai founded Malala Fund in 2013 to champion every girl’s right to 12 years of free, safe, quality education. With nearly 120 million girls out of school today, Malala Fund works to break down barriers that hold girls back.
USC Cinema student filmmaker Bryce Ferendo accepted the Jury Award for Best Student Dramatic Short for his film A Thousand Years about the Wright Brothers. Student film Finalists that screened also include Suppressus by Grant Jones, The Seed of Truth by W.Y. Geng, At Present by Justin Dormitzer (Jury Award: Student Animation Short), The Undertakers by Zac Lazarou, and The Migration Web by Andre Leo.
Past winners Philip Johnson and Kenneth Hughes (Einstein’s God Model) captured red carpet interviews with filmmakers and guests.
The mission of the Raw Science Film Festival is to humanize science and ensure that fact-based experts stay at the forefront of popular culture by celebrating the best science storytelling in the world. The foundation of Raw Science is storytelling through film, digital media, and the performing arts. These are the best ways to engage audiences with the histories, the discoveries, and the diverse people who dedicate their lives to finding scientific solutions to our most pressing problems. The Raw Science Film Festival was initially made possible by the National Academy of Sciences and Science and Entertainment Exchange. The festival is proud to add innovative film and live performance arts that engage with science and technology to New York’s cultural ecosystem.