What happens when scientists and filmmakers collide and what stories emerge? This was the question posed by ‘Science on Screen’, an initiative from Galway UNESCO City of Film with Galway Film Centre, CÚRAM at NUI Galway with with the support of Science Foundation of Ireland. The result has been two documentaries which will premiere in Galway on Saturday 19th November, featuring the groundbreaking world of medical device research taking place in CÚRAM.
Storytelling through science was the ethos that underpinned these films and this is apparent from the rich characters that are encountered in both documentaries. In Mending Legends, presented by Máire Treasa Ní Dhubhghaill, we meet Jessie Barr who just missed out on the Rio 2016 Olympics due to tendon injury, made all the more bittersweet by her brother’s fourth placing in the 400m hurdles at those very same events. Pádraic Joyce, Galway football legend, also recounts playing through the pain for the love of the game. The exciting research led by Dr. Dimitrios Zeugolis that is taking place at CÚRAM, in NUI Galway, could make huge differences to sports people of the future. The film is produced by James Ryan of StationHouse Media in Athenry and directed by Paul Webster.
In Feats of Modest Valour audiences meet three individuals living with the physical challenges of Parkinson’s. Brian Carney from County Mayo works on the family farm, while Milena Lulic who lives in Galway city recounts her days in World War II in Croatia. Also Tom Hickey, Irish actor who recently received a lifetime achievement award at the Abbey Theatre from the President Michael D. Higgins, talks about how suffering for his art takes on a whole new meaning with the disease. Meanwhile, scientists led by Dr. Eilis Dowd continue searching for a way to halt the disease. The film is co-directed and co-produced by Mia Mullarkey and Alice McDowell of Ishka Films.
Declan Gibbons, director of Galway UNESCO City of Film stated that
One of the key ambitions underscoring Galway’s status as a UNESCO City of Film is to promote the merging of science, technology and creativity in exciting new projects. The idea of using film to explore the ground breaking scientific research being done on our doorstep in CÚRAM in NUI Galway, offers a wonderful fusion of art and science in a highly creative way. It is exactly the type of project that City of Film should be initiating and so we are delighted to have been involved in these two films since the get-go.
Professor Abhay Pandit, Scientific Director of CÚRAM, which is based in NUI Galway, added
The two research projects featured in these documentaries are at the cutting edge of biomedical research. Our investigators are coordinating these projects across Europe with numerous academic and industry partners. One of our key goals at CÚRAM is to provide access to information that comes from our research, so that the Irish public can stay informed about advances in science and healthcare. Science on Screen and our partnership with Galway Film Centre is one of our core public engagement programmes and we are delighted to have such strong outputs from the initiative this year. It is really important for us to ensure that there’s a two way flow of information happening between our researchers and members of the public, and these filmmakers have succeeded brilliantly in helping us do just that.
Commenting also, Dr. Ruth Freeman, Director Strategy and Communications Science Foundation Ireland said
Supporting projects like this is part of our aim to create greater public debate and knowledge on challenges we face as a society and how scientific research and discoveries are helping to find solutions. By supporting Irish film and TV production we hope to make these stories accessible to a wide audience in an entertaining and engaging manner.
Fittingly, these two films will premiere during both SFI’s National Science Week and the Galway Science and Technology Festival, on Saturday 19th November in An Taibhdhearc. Jonathan McCrea of Newstalk Radio will conduct a Q&A with the filmmakers and scientists following the screening.
For more info visit the Galway Film Centre website.