Science and cinema to meet in Abu Dhabi film festival

A photo of a pearl diver on display in the Pearl Museum at National Bank of Dubai building in Dubai. Pawan Singh / The National
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The New York-based film festival Imagine Science Films, in partnership with NYU Abu Dhabi, is to bring its science film festival to Abu Dhabi from February 19 – 21 in collaboration with the NYUAD Institute and the NYUAD Arts Center. The festival will celebrate the art of science through three feature film screenings, 35 short films, a science art gallery exhibition and educational workshops and talks scheduled over three days. The film festival will take place at NYU Abu Dhabi’s Saadiyat Island campus and is open to the public.

The artistic director and founder of Imagine Science Films, the geneticist and film maker Alexis Gambis says: “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 will focus 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 jeopardise the coast, the corals that thrive in the Gulf, and the future of space travel from Abu Dhabi. The festival includes a variety of film types including documentary, non-fiction, docufiction, experimental films, animation, and even raw science data.

“Imagine Science builds bridges between two great domains of human creativity—science and art,” said NYU Abu Dhabi deputy vice-chancellor Hilary Ballon. “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.”

For more information about the festival, to view the complete program, and to reserve your seat, please visit the website.