WEBSITE

Sloan Science & Film, an initiative of the Museum of the Moving Image, examines the intersection of science and cinema. Publishing weekly, the online publication features interviews with filmmakers and scientists, news about goings on in the world of science and film, and original articles exploring the cinematic depictions of scientific ideas and the science of film. Sloan Science & Film's "Peer Review" commissioning series publishes original writing by scientists on topics in current film and television. On the website, over 60 science-themed short films are available to stream any time, all of which have received grants from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation for their depictions of scientific themes and characters. These films are part of the over 700 film projects that have been supported by the Sloan Foundation that Sloan Science & Film catalogues with loglines and filmmaker biographies.

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FILM SERIES

The Sloan Science & Film initiative also encompasses Museum of the Moving Image's ongoing Science on Screen series. Science on Screen combines screenings of rarely-seen films with conversations between scientists and filmmakers. Films span from the silent era through those made for the Internet; subjects range from seahorses to robotic clones. The series has featured the work of such filmmmakers as Isabella Rossellini, Lynn Hershman Leeson, Barbara Hammer, and Alex Rivera, who have discussed topics including marine organisms, reproductive biology, and human-robot interactions with scientists including Mandë Holford, Fabien Cousteau, and Maria Gloria Dominguez-Bello.

FILMMAKER SUPPORT

To directly support filmmakers, the Sloan Science & Film initiative administers the Sloan Student Grand Jury and Discovery Prizes, which celebrate two outstanding feature film or scripted series screenplays annually—from those nominated by twelve top graduate film programs—that integrate science or technology themes and characters into a realistic, compelling, and timely story. Two winners, selected by a jury of esteemed film and science professionals, receive a $20,000 prize and are provided industry exposure, feedback, and year-round mentorship from a science advisor and film industry professional. These prizes aim to support film development and advance the careers of diverse, emerging filmmakers interested in science and technology as they transition out of graduate school and into the film industry.

EDUCATION RESOURCES

Sloan Science & Film has published two freely available education guides to short and feature science-related films. All of these films have been supported by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation for their depiction of scientific themes and characters.

The Sloan Science & Film Short Film Teacher's Guide is a guide to 50 short, science-related films that can be streamed on this website or our Vimeo channel. Each film is indexed by scientific subject matter, correlated with National Next Generation Science Standards, and offers discussion questions as well as vetted links to scientific resources for further engagement. The Guide can be viewed online or downloaded as a PDF.

The Sloan Science & Film Feature Film Companion Guide accompanies 46 science-based feature films (such as Hidden Figures and Primer) catalogued by scientific subject matter, correlated for age appropriateness, and accompanied by discussion questions and vetted resources for continued engagement. The Companion Guide can be viewed online or downloaded as a PDF.

ABOUT THE SLOAN FILM PROGRAM

The Alfred P. Sloan Foundation has been awarding production and screenwriting grants to filmmakers since 1997. The Sloan Film Program aims to influence the next generation of filmmakers to tackle science and technology themes and characters, to increase visibility for feature films that depict this subject matter, and to develop new work that can be produced and released theatrically.

Sloan’s Film Program encourages filmmakers to create more realistic and compelling stories about science and technology and to challenge existing stereotypes about scientists and engineers in the popular imagination. Over the past two decades, Sloan has partnered with a dozen leading film schools and established annual awards in screenwriting and film production. The Foundation also supports screenplay development programs with the Sundance Institute, SFFILM, Film Independent, The Black List, the Athena Film Festival and the Toronto International Film Festival. The Sloan Film Program has supported over 750 film projects and has helped develop over 30 feature films, including Tesla, Radium Girls, Adventures of a Mathematician, One Man Dies a Million Times, The Sound of Silence, To Dust, Operator, The Imitation Game and The Man Who Knew Infinity. The Foundation has supported feature documentaries such as Werner Herzog’s Theater of Thought, Laura Bialis’ Vishniac, David France’s How to Survive a Pandemic, Picture a Scientist, Coded Bias, In Silico, Oliver Sacks: His Own Life, The Bit Player, Bombshell: The Hedy Lamarr Story, Particle Fever and Jacques Perrin’s Oceans. It has also given early award recognition to stand out films such as Blackberry, The Pod Generation, Don’t Look Up, After Yang, Linoleum, Son of Monarchs, Ammonite, The Aeronauts, Searching, The Martian, First Man and Hidden Figures. Sloan Science & Film hosts the only comprehensive database of these 750+ film projects.