The Coolidge Corner Theatre has paired scientists with movies for nearly seven years. Located in Brookline, Massachusetts, the Theatre takes advantage of Boston’s plentiful universities to bring in scientists for its Science on Screen program. They talk about phenomena in films as diverse as Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure, Night of the Living Dead, 12 Monkeys, and Crimes and Misdemeanors.
Science on Screen benefits from the support of the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, as well as the Museum of Science. The Sloan Foundation has partnered with Coolidge to bring Science on Screen to non-profit theaters across the country. As the Foundation has sponsored plays and films that explore scientific themes, it’s not surprising to see them involved in this effort.
After a successful pilot program with eight theaters in 2011, the program expands to 20 theaters this year and another 20 in 2012. The grants aren’t enormous ($7,000), so I would expect successful theaters will have to find other partners to make their Science on Screen programs sustainable. Winning theaters will need to host three Science on Screen events each year, and one of those events must feature a film that received a Sloan Foundation film or screenplay award.
As the Boston Globe article notes, there could be more coming out of these efforts than a little mind expansion for the audience. You can credit the future film version of The Zombie Autopsies to author Stephen Schlozman’s paper he wrote in preparation for a Science-to-Screen event with Night of the Living Dead.
