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Inaugural Imagine Science Film Festival in Abu Dhabi

Press Release

New York based film festival Imagine Science Films, in partnership with NYU Abu Dhabi, will present the singular science film festival in Abu Dhabi from February 19 – 21, 2015 in collaboration with the NYUAD Institute and the NYUAD Arts Center. This interdisciplinary festival will celebrate the art of science through three feature film screenings, thirty-five short films, a science art gallery exhibition and educational workshops scheduled over three days. The film festival will take place at NYU Abu Dhabi’s Saadiyat Island campus and is open to the public.

Founded by geneticist and filmmaker Alexis Gambis, Imagine Science Films bridges the gap between art and science making science more engaging and accessible to the public. Imagine Science Films began as a small film club at Rockefeller University in New York in 2008, and has since hosted the annual Imagine Science Film Festival in New York City with support from Google, Nature and AAAS as well as science film festivals around the world. ISF is the first science film festival founded, and still run by scientists.

Artistic Director and Founder of Imagine Science Films Alexis Gambis said: “By bringing new forms of scientific expression to Abu Dhabi, we aim to foster a dialogue between the sciences and the arts in parallel with the expanding cultural scene in the UAE.”

The Imagine Science Film Festival in Abu Dhabi focuses on themes inspired by science occurring in the region including water, coral research, pearl culture technology and space exploration. Films will explore the way people reshape water and how it shapes us, the return of the pearl trade to Abu Dhabi via pearl culture technology, the fault lines that still jeopardize the coast, the corals which thrive in the Gulf, and the future of space travel from Abu Dhabi. Other programs move from the physical landscape of the region to the internal, where the shores of the mind may be eroded by time and illness, to the cusp of music, biology, and technology, and into the future of the Middle East and beyond. The film festival includes a variety of film types including documentary, non-fiction, docufiction, experimental films, animation, and even raw science data.

NYU Abu Dhabi Deputy Vice Chancellor Hilary Ballon said: "Imagine Science builds bridges between two great domains of human creativity — science and art. NYU Abu Dhabi is thrilled to bring this pioneering film festival to Abu Dhabi, where it will explore water, coral research, and other topics of special relevance to the region."

There could not be a better place to host a three-day science film festival than the art, science and cultural hub of the Middle East, Abu Dhabi. The festival is open to the public; ticket reservations are required for this exciting weekend celebrating the artistic and scientific endeavors of Abu Dhabi and abroad.

For more information about the festival, to view the complete program, and to reserve your seat, please visit the website at: imaginesciencefilms.org/isf-satellite-abu-dhabi

About NYU Abu Dhabi

NYU Abu Dhabi is the first comprehensive liberal arts and research campus in the Middle East to be operated abroad by a major American research university. NYU Abu Dhabi has integrated a highly selective undergraduate curriculum across the disciplines with a world center for advanced research and scholarship. The university enables its students in the sciences, engineering, social sciences, humanities, and arts to succeed in an increasingly interdependent world and advance cooperation and progress on humanity’s shared challenges. NYU Abu Dhabi’s high-achieving students have come from over 115 countries and speak over 115 languages. Together, NYU's campuses in New York, Abu Dhabi, and Shanghai form the backbone of a unique global university, giving faculty and students opportunities to experience varied learning environments and immersion in other cultures at one or more of the numerous study-abroad sites NYU maintains on six continents.