Want a better brain? Meet Dr. Marian Diamond … in a film about brains, the passion and battleground of scientific discovery, Albert Einstein’s brain tissue, YouTube, women in science, and love.
• EMMY AWARD NOMINATION Outstanding Science Documentary of 2017
• BEST SCIENCE FILM OF 2017 - AAAS/Kavli Gold Medal, Science Journalism Awards
• BEST SCIENCE FILMs OF 2017 - Science Books & Film year-end list
• BEST EDUCATIONAL film of 2017, Pariscience Festival International du Films Scientifique, Prix ADAV
• Best in Festival – Audience Award, RiverRun International Film Festival, Winston-Salem, NC,
• Best in Festival – American Psychological Association film festival
• Best Documentary – Indigo Moon film festival
• Best Documentary – High Falls Film Festival, NY
• Best Documentary, Audience Award, Durango Film Festival
• Audience Favorite Award – Mill Valley Film Festival, CA
LENGTH 56:40
NARRATOR: Mayim Bialik
DESCRIPTION (courtesy of doxafestival.ca/film/brain)
How can you not fall in love with a woman who carries around a preserved human brain inside a giant flowery hat box? Meet Dr. Marian Diamond, renowned academic and research scientist, and prepare to be smitten.
Catherine Ryan and Gary Weimberg’s film follows this remarkable woman over a 5-year period and introduces the viewer to both her many scientific accomplishments and the warm, funny, and thoroughly charming woman herself, who describes her 60-year career researching the human brain as “pure joy.
As one of the founders of modern neuroscience, it’s no exaggeration to say that Dr. Diamond changed science, and society at large in dramatic ways over the course of her career. Her groundbreaking work is all the more remarkable because it began during an era when so few women entered science at all. Shouted at from the back of the conference hall by noteworthy male academics as she presented her research, and disparaged in the scientific journals of a more conservative era, Dr. Diamond simply did the work and followed where her curiosity led her, bringing about a paradigm shift (or two) in the process. As she points out, in order to get to the answers that matter, you have to start by asking the right questions.
ANOTHER DESCRIPTION (courtesy of Mill Valley Film Festival):
"Meet Dr. Marian Diamond as she pulls a human brain out of a hatbox and lovingly enumerates its astonishing qualities. A mad scientist? Quite the opposite. In this energetic documentary, Dr. Diamond is revealed as one of the great minds—one of the founders, in fact—of modern neuroscience. If her name isn’t yet as familiar as that of Marie Curie, it will be: Dr. Diamond’s unprecedented work includes theorizing and proving previously unimagined brain capabilities, analyzing Albert Einstein’s preserved brain, and building a scientific and academic career that broke barriers for women in science. Much like the old adage about Ginger Rogers doing it all backwards and in heels, Dr. Diamond achieved every success with steely determination behind astonishing positivity, warmth, and magnetism. Watch this to learn about an amazing woman, a brilliant scientist, a fascinating branch of scientific research, and about the core element that fuels great achievement in all endeavors: love."
REVIEWS:
" ... utterly charming, inspiring documentary ..." Stark Insider, California
"... delightful ..." San Jose Mercury News
" ... utterly fascinating ..." Vancouvers’s “Georgia Straight”
“ …a tweeedy celebrity of cyberspace …” New York Times
QUOTES
"… a must see for every student, teacher, parent, community member, and higher education teacher prep program!”
PEGGY BROOKINS, President and CEO, National Board for Professional Teaching Standards
“Marian Diamond is to the brain like Julia Childs is to French cooking. Celebrated, beloved, one of the most popular teachers in the world brings you her passion about the brain. The perfect brain owners manual…”
MARILYN BANCEL, Exploratorium Science Museum, Director of Development, (retired)
“My Love Affair with the Brain” reveals the soul of science through the remarkable life of Marian Diamond. Her passion to explore the brain, her keen insights into how it responds to our experiences, and her drive to share her enchantment and discoveries with a n
This is a 6 minute clip, from the opening of the PBS program with accompanying documentary web series.
For more info: lunaproductions.com/marian-diamond/
or contact:
gary@lunaproductions.com
video file: _v14 wEm
