Tag Archives: documentary

Insilico Medicine (clinical stage end-to-end AI drug discovery company) has a documentary/hackathon competition: Docuthon: submit by August 31, 2023

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This July 11, 2023 Insilico Medicine news release on EurekAlert announces a judge for their Docuthon contest along with some contest details,

Taryn Southern, a storyteller, filmmaker and speaker covering emerging technology who created an award-winning virtual reality (VR) series, as well as AI music and a sci-fi documentary, has joined the judging panel of Insilico Medicine’s Docuthon competition. 

Southern has been a sharp observer of the influence and rise of technology. She first gained public notice at age 17 as a semi-finalist on American Idol and later became a YouTube sensation, garnering more than 1 billion views. Soon after, she began actively pursuing her creative interests in emerging technologies and the possibilities of artificial intelligence (AI) and VR to improve human life and potential. 

Clinical stage end-to-end AI drug discovery company Insilico Medicine (“Insilico”) launched the Docuthon (documentary hackathon) competition to invite participants from around the world to tell the story of AI drug discovery, using footage captured over the Company’s nearly decade-long journey. The competition provides a way for participants to share the achievements of generative AI in advancing new medicines through the story of Insilico’s lead drug for the rare lung disease idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, which was discovered and designed by generative AI and has now entered Phase II clinical trials with patients. 

Southern says that as a young breast cancer survivor she is personally motivated to support AI drug discovery. 

“I can speak as someone with experience who has been diagnosed with a life-threatening disease, in my case stage 3 cancer,” Southern says. “When you’re in that situation you are looking for any possibility of hope. As we are just now beginning to see, AI-enabled drug discovery will rapidly shift the realm of possibility for these patients.” 

Since her breakout YouTube success in 2007, Southern has gone on to produce digital content and advise companies such as AirBNB, Conde Naste, Marriott, and Ford. She also released the world’s first pop album composed with AI, created an award-winning animated VR series for Google, made a video clone of herself, and directed and produced a documentary about the future of brain-computer interfaces called I AM HUMAN which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2019.

Southern is also a three-time Streamy Award nominee, an AT&T Film Award Winner, one of the Top 20 Women in VR (VRScout), and was featured as part of Ford’s national “She’s Got Drive” campaign. She sits on the board of the National Academy of Medicine’s Longevity Challenge, which aims to award breakthroughs in longevity science, and invests in emerging tech companies like Cue, Oura, Vessel, Aspiration, and others.

Docuthon categories include best feature, best short, best curated, and most creative with prize amounts ranging from $4,000 to $8,000. Interested participants are invited to register. Submissions are due Aug. 31, 2023. [emphasis mine]

Southern says she’ll be looking for Docuthon submissions that connect on a human level. 

“With storytelling about technology, it’s important to not forget the human piece,” she says,“really focusing on the impact this will have on humanity and the people who are creating the technology and their personal stories.” 

“We’re thrilled to have Taryn join us as a Docuthon judge,” says Alex Zhavoronkov, PhD, founder and CEO of Insilico Medicine. “She brings creative vision to all of her projects and really understands how to tell compelling stories around emerging technologies.”

About Insilico Medicine

Insilico Medicine, a clinical stage end-to-end artificial intelligence (AI)-driven drug discovery [AIDD] company, is connecting biology, chemistry, and clinical trials analysis using next-generation AI systems. The company has developed AI platforms that utilize deep generative models, reinforcement learning, transformers, and other modern machine learning techniques for novel target discovery and the generation of novel molecular structures with desired properties. Insilico Medicine is developing breakthrough solutions to discover and develop innovative drugs for cancer, fibrosis, immunity, central nervous system diseases, infectious diseases, autoimmune diseases, and aging-related diseases. www.insilico.com 

There’s a bit more information on Docuthon’s Eventbrite registration page, Note: A link has been removed,

With an extraordinary design and tremendous calculation speed, artificial intelligence has become an inevitable trend in many areas of drug discovery. It helps identify biological targets, design small molecules for potential cure, and save a ton of research time.

AIDD is good news to the entire human society, but the society has not learnt much about this new technology. When did AI enable the first pipeline? What happened when it failed? How did scientists persist along the way?

Inspired by the movie AlphaGo, we believe the AIDD world deserves its own seminal film. Through the DOCUTHON, we seek to bring together documentary filmmakers and enthusiasts with those who believe in the potential of AI and care about human wellbeing.

Insilico Medicine will share a massive collection of footage showing every step of AI-powered drug discovery, participants are also welcome to use original contents including graphics and animations. A group of judges from both the science and film industries will decide the best edited films based on accuracy, creativity, etc.

This is an excellent opportunity to build your scientific storytelling portfolio AND win a big prize. And all the documentaries might be aired on our official websites and national video platforms. For more details, please visit insilico.com/docuthon or email us at event@insilico.ai

Insilico’s ‘splash’ page features four categories (scroll down about 40% of the way), the judging criteria and more details about submission requirements,

Best Feature

🎬 Best long-form entry
⏱ 16-60 min
💵 $6K award

Best Short

🎬 Best short-form entry
⏱ 3-15 min
💵 $4K award

Best CURATED

🎬 Best edited storyline among all entries
💵 $5K award

Most Creative

🎬 Most creative format or plot among all entries
💵 $5K award

JUDGING CRITERIA

Comprehensive narration of AIDD [artificial intelligence (AI)-driven drug discovery] and development of Insilico Medicine
Accurate referral and explanation of scientific facts
Creative and interesting approach that holds public attention

You may want to take a look at the Docuthon Competition Agreement (PDF). Not a lawyer—but it looks like you’re signing away almost all of your rights.

There isn’t a list of past winners although Insilico seems to have run the contest at least once before, from the YouTube page featuring the company’s introductory Docuthon video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5LmmXEVyqh4), Note: A link has been removed,

704 views Dec 13, 2022

Artificial intelligence-powered drug discovery company Insilico Medicine announces a first-of-its-kind documentary film hackathon called Docuthon to encourage creative scientific exploration. Participants from around the world are invited to use footage provided by the Company to tell the story of Insilico Medicine and of advances in AI-powered drug discovery, an industry now at a tipping point. Films can be submitted as a documentary short or a documentary feature and cash prizes of up to $8,000 USD will be awarded for Best Feature, Best Short, Best Curated, and Most Creative. Submissions will be judged based on their success at telling the story of AI drug development and of Insilico Medicine, on their scientific accuracy, and on the level of creativity and ability to hold the viewer’s interest. Registration for the Docuthon is open through March 1, 2023. Submissions are due in April 2023, and winners will be announced in May 2023. Additional details can be found at: https://insilico.com/docuthon.

I’m not sure if you have to register for this latest version of the contest as the Eventbrite registration indicates a submission date only so you may want to contact the organizers.

Good luck and don’t forget the August 31, 2023 deadline!

Fixed: The Science/Fiction of Human Enhancement

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First the news, Fixed: The Science/Fiction of Human Enhancement is going to be broadcast on KCTS 9 (PBS [Public Broadcasting Service] station for Seattle/Yakima) on Wednesday, Aug. 26, 2015 at 7 pm PDT. From the KCTS 9 schedule,

From botox to bionic limbs, the human body is more “upgradeable” than ever. But how much of it can we alter and still be human? What do we gain or lose in the process? Award-winning documentary, Fixed: The Science/Fiction of Human Enhancement, explores the social impact of human biotechnologies. Haunting and humorous, poignant and political, Fixed rethinks “disability” and “normalcy” by exploring technologies that promise to change our bodies and minds forever.

This 2013 documentary has a predecessor titled ‘Fixed’, which I wrote about in an August 3, 2010 posting. The director for both ‘Fixeds’ is Regan Brashear.

It seems the latest version of Fixed builds on the themes present in the first, while integrating the latest scientific work (to 2013) in the field of human enhancement (from my August 3, 2010 posting),

As for the film, I found this at the University of California, Santa Cruz,

Fixed is a video documentary that explores the burgeoning field of “human enhancement” technologies from the perspective of individuals with disabilities. Fixed uses the current debates surrounding human enhancement technologies (i.e. bionic limbs, brain machine interfaces, prenatal screening technologies such as PGD or pre-implantation genetic diagnosis, etc.) to tackle larger questions about disability, inequality, and citizenship. This documentary asks the question, “Will these technologies ‘liberate’ humanity, or will they create even more inequality?”

You can find out more about the 2013 Fixed on its website or Facebook page (they list opportunities in the US, in Canada, and internationally to see the documentary). There is also a listing of PBS broadcasts available from the Fixed: The Science/Fiction of Human Enhancement Press page.

I recognized two names from the cast list on the Internet Movie Database (IMDB) page for Fixed: The Science/Fiction of Human Enhancement, Gregor Wolbring (he also appeared in the first ‘Fixed’) and Hugh Herr.

Gregor has been mentioned here a few times in connection with human enhancement. A Canadian professor at the University of Calgary, he’s active in the field of bioethics and you can find out more about Gregor and his work here.

Hugh Herr was first mentioned here in a January 30, 2013 posting titled: The ultimate DIY: ‘How to build a robotic man’ on BBC 4. He is a robotocist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

The two men offering contrasting perspectives, Gregor Wolbring, ‘we should re-examine the notion that some people are impaired and need to be fixed’,  and Hugh Herr, ‘we will eliminate all forms of impairment’. Hopefully, the 2013 documentary has managed to present more of the nuances than I have.

Slingshot; a movie about a water purification system

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Thanks to David Bruggeman of the Pasco Phronesis blog for his Aug. 2, 2015 posting about Slingshot, which is both a water purification system and a documentary about Dean Kamen, inventor, and his system.  From the Slingshot (movie) About page,

SlingShot focuses on Segway inventor Dean Kamen, his fascinating life, and his work to solve the world’s water crisis.

Iconoclast, Kamen, is a modern hero. His inventions, mostly medical devices, help people in need and ease suffering. Several documentaries have been produced about the world’s dire water challenges. SlingShot is a film about an indomitable man who just might have enough passion, will, and innovative thinking to create a solution for a crisis that affects billions.

A quirky genius with a sharp wit and a provocative worldview, Kamen is our era’s Thomas Edison. He takes on the world’s grand challenges one invention at a time. Best known for his Segway Human Transporter, Kamen has reconceived kidney dialysis, engineered an electric wheelchair that can travel up stairs (the iBot), reworked the heart stent, built portable insulin pumps, founded FIRST robotics to inspire young students, and on and on. Holder of over 440 U.S. and foreign patents, Kamen devotes himself to dreaming up products that improve people’s lives. For the last 15 years, he has relentlessly pursued an effective way to clean up the world’s water supply.

Fifty percent of all human illness is the result of water borne pathogens. Dean Kamen has invented an energy efficient vapor compression distiller that can turn any unfit source of water (seawater, poisoned well water, river sludge, etc.) into potable, safe water without any need for chemical additives or filters. Kamen has nicknamed his device the SlingShot as in the David and Goliath story. In Kamen’s imagining, undeveloped countries are filled with little Davids, and just like the biblical slingshot and stone, the SlingShot device is the tiny piece of technology that is going to take down the gigantic Goliath of bad water.

David lists upcoming US screenings of the documentary and speculates as to a possible market for the system in the US. From David’s Aug. 2, 2015 posting,

It’s worth noting that while Kamen’s target markets for the Slingshot device are in the developing world, the drought in the Western United States may generate additional demand for the Slingshot.  The water conservation tips on the film’s website are worth following, and perhaps some enterprising (or desperate) local government may try to address its water troubles through judicious use of technology like the Slingshot.

You can check the Slingshot documentary Upcoming webpage for US and international screenings, as well as, a list of screenings stretching back to March 2014. Should you wish to host a screening, there’s the Host a Screening webpage.

Unfortunately, I was not able to find any technical details, additional to those on the About page, regarding Kamen’s vapor compression distiller (Slingshot).

Canada Aviation and Space Museum’s Legacy Project (crowdfunding)

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Dec. 19, 2014 is the last day for contributing to the Canada Aviation and Space Museum’s crowdfunding campaign for their Legacy Project. Here’s more from the Canada Aviation and Space Museum Foundation’s Legacy Project webpage,

What happens when people divided by generations unite to share our country’s history? The Legacy Project is a documentary being created by Canadian film students and the Canada Aviation and Space Museum. Through first person accounts from Canadian Veterans — airmen and women who served in the RCAF, RAF, WAAF, and the Polish Air Force — as well as from former European civilians, the documentary will showcase the people and stories of the Second World War through the lens of aviation. What began as an oral history project has transformed into a documentary that also includes the personal impact these stories have had on the students who have been involved in the production of the film. Formatted in five separate segments, the documentary can be viewed as a whole or in parts. These segments, along with classroom resources, will be available for download by schools across Canada.

The Museum believes there is a need to better connect today’s youth, who are poised to build the future, with their history and heritage. It is important to capture and understand the legacy that the last living members of the generation that experienced, served in, and lived though the Second World War forged and are leaving behind. The Museum takes the responsibility “to never forget” seriously, and this project endeavours to capture and share this legacy with Canadian students from coast to coast to coast.

The Legacy Project has become a labour of love for the Canada Aviation and Space Museum and the film students who have so far recorded over 35 interviews with Veterans and civilians since filming began two years ago. Funding is required to complete editing, transcription, translation, and dubbing, and to secure the necessary copyright for music and images.

As a Crown corporation, the Museum’s operational costs are covered by taxpayer dollars, but the funding for special projects such as this documentary comes from donors like you. The Museum is passionate about this project and would be grateful for any community support to finalize and distribute the documentary for 2016.

A campaign video has been produced,

You can find the Legacy Project on indiegogo here.

The notice I received form the museum states this about the funds raised so far,

The Museum’s crowdfunding campaign for The Legacy Project, a documentary being created by students, for students, ends tomorrow. So far, over $18,000 has been gratefully received from across Canada, but your help is still needed to reach the fundraising goal of $35,000.

I notice the inidiegogo campaign has a different total and one reason I can think for the disparity is the museum is receiving some of the donations directly. In any event, I wish them good luck and hope they reach their total.