On a recent trip to this year’s Film & History conference I presented my current research in a paper called ‘From Sacred to Scientific: Charlton Heston’s Second Golden Age’. The fascinating post-paper discussion revolved around eco dystopian cinema, with a focus on my work on Soylent Green and Omega Man. Following a discussion of the connections between epics and science… Read more →
The members of the Science and Entertainment Lab have been working for the past year on a project associated with a Wellcome Trust Investigator Award. The goal of the Playing God Project is to examine the intersections between the biosciences, religion and entertainment media. We have posted a summary page on our website explaining what the project is about as… Read more →
Uncertainty is an important aspect of scientific work and it is no secret that progress is a less straightforward path than what is presented in research councils’ calls for proposals, or national and EU strategy plans. The conflict between actual research output and expectations that are raised can be difficult to articulate, unless one finds stories that can make the… Read more →
Do vampire narratives become science fiction when vampirism is created or/and ‘cured’ by science? Whether benevolent, malicious, or uncontrolled, science is rivalling if not, in some cases, entirely replacing the supernatural as the most prevalent component of recent vampire narratives. Where once there was a vampire slayer and her pointy stick there are now scientists armed with vaccines and syringes. Read more →
Evolutionary biology has been a consistent theme in movies going back to the earliest days of cinema. Filmmakers come back to evolutionary themes because evolution is about transformation and transformation always makes for good drama and for good cinematic visuals. As it turns out, this summer has been a banner year for evolution at the movies as a large number… Read more →
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