Celluloid Scientists

  The mad scientist is a Hollywood staple but a screenplay award aims to
  challenge the stereotype.

The mad scientist is a Hollywood staple. From the demonic Dr.
Frankenstein to "Jurassic Park"'s misguided geneticists, scientists in
the movies are downright dangerous characters. But some say it's
misleading to portray them as freaks wreaking havoc on the world. To
challenge stereotypes and encourage filmmakers to present more realistic
stories about science and technology, the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation
makes grants to the country?s top film schools for annual awards to new
scripts with more accurate portrayals of scientists.

In 1999, the American Film Institute's winner was "Return to Denali".
Inspired by a true story, the main character is an active outdoorsman
whose plane crashes into Mt. McKinley, killing two of his passengers. He
survives but loses both legs below the knee. He meets a world-renowned
prosthesis doctor and the two work to build the best set of prosthetic
legs ever made. The 1998 AFI winner was "Gray Matter," about a day in
the life of a coroner. It was accepted at several film festivals,
including the 2000 Sundance Festival.

Participating schools include the American Film Institute and film and
drama programs at the University of California at Los Angeles,
University of Southern California, New York University, Columbia
University and Carnegie-Mellon University. Scientists, filmmakers and
screenwriters sit on the selection committees for the screenwriting and
film production awards. The Sloan competitions began in 1997. They
haven't yet produced a blockbuster but they?re holding out.

*CONTACTS*

Joe Petricca <mailto:jpetricca@afionline.org>: 
Coordinator, Special Projects American Film Institute
Phone: (323) 856-7721

Alan Baker <mailto:abaker@cinema.usc.edu>: Assistant Dean School of
Cinema-Television, University of Southern California

The Sloan Foundation Web site <http://w3.scale.uiuc.edu> explains grant
programs in Public Understanding of Science and Technology

*LINKS*
"The Science of Hollywood"
<http://www.skypub.com/news/special/impact/hollywood.html> by Stuart
Goldman, /Sky & Telescope/.

The Crimes and Clues Web site <http://crimeandclues.com/hollywood.htm>
includes an article on Forensic Science Hollywood style.

Steve Nottingham's site
<http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/Stephen_Nottingham/cinema.htm>
is a personal cinema review site with pages on "Screening DNA" and
"Jurassic Park".

"Reel Gaffes: <http://www.usnews.com/usnews/issue/980629/29flic.htm>
Hollywood loves science, but it's a rocky romance at best", /US News &
World Report/, June 28, 1998.

ABCNews.com
<http://more.abcnews.go.com/sections/science/dailynews/deepimpact980508.html>
has a report on the science of movie "Deep Impact".

The /Discover/ Web site
<http://www.discover.com/science_news/impact.html> includes an article
on the science of disaster movies.

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