Jan. 24, 2024, 6:30-9 p.m.
Asia Society Texas Center
Presented in association with the Asia Society Texas Center
Film Screening of “Make People Better”
and Discussion with Producer Samira Kiani,
in Conversation with Robert Howell
Schedule
6:30 p.m. Film Screening
8 p.m. Discussion
8:45 p.m. Audience Q&A
The documentary Make People Better explores cutting-edge genetic and biotechnological developments in China, examining the 2018 case of biophysicist He Jiankui who created the first genetically edited human babies in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen. Exploring the landscape of genetic research, personalized medicine, and ethical considerations, the documentary provides a rare and comprehensive look into China's role in advancing the frontiers of genomic science.
Join us for a screening, followed by a conversation with Samira Kiani, geneticist and Make People Better producer, and moderator Robert J. Howell, Yasser El-Sayed Professor and Chair of the Department of Philosophy at Rice University, on the pivotal role of genetic research in shaping the future of healthcare and its implications for individuals and communities in China, the United States, and beyond.
Feb. 10, 2024, 7 p.m.
Rice Cinema, Sewall Hall, Room 301 (ground floor)
Presented in association with the “BIO-FICTION Science, Art & Film Festival”
Film festival: “BIO-FICTION @ Rice”(shorts)
| Film Title | Director | Synopsis | Duration | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Reinventing the Dodo |
Steven van Eekelen |
What if we could resurrect extinct animals, like the dodo? This film speculates what could happen and how our relationship to the resurrected animal might change over time. |
0:03:21 |
Netherlands |
|
Adam & Eve Mk II |
Sebastian Kuder |
In a post-apocalyptic future, human memories from the now-extinct species Homo sapiens are loaded into the artificial brain of a robot. |
0:04:13 |
United Kingdom |
|
Local Unit |
Tad Ermitano |
A man trades off his brain on the black market..... |
0:09:18 |
Philippines |
|
Perfectly Natural |
Victor Alonso-Berbel |
For Wanda and Zach, Future Families is a lifetime opportunity: a virtual parenting system that gives their baby access to a better life. But they soon realize this technology may come at a higher cost. |
0:13:44 |
United States |
|
The Auxiliary |
Frédéric Plasman |
Alone in front of her reflection in a collapsing world, someone desperate, feeling unfairly discredited, is going to end it all. But who is she and why is she doing this? |
0:08:42 |
Belgium |
|
Bruce |
Tom Judd |
Winner of the Bio·Fiction Festival 2011 Award Category ANIMATION |
0:03:28 |
UK |
|
Erase Love |
Javier Ideami |
Two sisters battle to outsmart each other, as they attempt to figure out which one of them will be sent away by their father after their mother’s death, and why. |
0:12:00 |
Spain (& Indonesia) |
|
Carlotta's Face |
Valentin Riedl & Frédéric Schuld |
As a child, Carlotta didn’t expect the people around her to have faces. She even doesn’t recognize her own face, and years later, she learns about a rare, untreatable deficit of her brain. It was art, after all, that offered her a way to finally recognize herself. |
0:05:00 |
Germany |
|
E.chromi |
Daisy Ginsberg |
Documentary about an iGEM team that wanted to genetically alter gut bacteria so they would become biosensors. The bacteria leaving the body as feces would express different colors according to the health status of the person. Winner of the Bio·Fiction Festival 2011 Award Category DOCUMENTARY |
0:04:30 |
UK |
|
Copy & Clone |
Louis Rigaud |
Winner of the Bio·Fiction Festival 2014 Award Category ANIMATION |
0:03:15 |
France |