Introduction: From “The Popularization of Science through Film” to “The Public Understanding of Science”

Abstract

Science in film, and usual equivalents such as science on film or science on screen, refer to the cinematographic representation, staging, and enactment of actors, information, and processes involved in any aspect or dimension of science and its history. Of course, boundaries are blurry, and films shot as research tools or documentation also display science on screen. Nonetheless, they generally count as scientific film, and science in and on film or screen tend to designate productions whose purpose is entertainment and education. Moreover, these two purposes are often combined, and inherently concern empirical, methodological, and conceptual challenges associated with popularization, science communication, and the public understanding of science. It is in these areas that the notion of the deficit model emerged to designate a point of view and a mode of understanding, as well as a set of practical and theoretical problems about the relationship between science and the public.

1960–1962. The international science film exhibition at the Museo Nazionale della Scienza e della Tecnica “Leonardo da Vinci” in Milan: The engineer’s solution to the problem of bridging museum, science, and cinema

“…For scholars like Berbenni scientific films were not necessarily films that talked about science, but films that engaged with a broader set of topics and communicative practices within the cultural realm. This case study shows how diverse the scenario of public understanding of science has been historically, beyond the so-called “deficit model” and the quest for “scientific literacy” (Nieto-Galan, 2016; Vidal, 2018). As attested by the MIFS programs, in the hands of Berbenni and his collaborators, the concept of scientific film expanded, including the arts as well as encouraging “media literacy” in the general public.…”

“…In the first half of the twentieth century, under the label “scientific film,” we find a complex galaxy of genres, including dissemination, didactic and research films. Since the very beginning, film-making played a pivotal role in the production of scientific knowledge (Wellmann, 2011: 325) as well as in the popularization of science (Boon, 2008; Gouyon, 2016; Vidal, 2018). Researchers used films for “making movies for projection at conferences as well as in lecture halls, museums and other public venues, not to mention for breaking down into individual frames for analysis” (Olszynko-Gryn, 2016: 279).…”

Epidemics, public health workers, and ‘heroism’ in cinematic perspective

“…First, regardless of whether we conceive of linking public health workers and heroic attributes as a 'good' or bad', 'positive' or 'negative' aspect, it has been shown that films -and visual culture more generally -affect how we think and feel: stories are how we make sense of the world. Accordingly, it has been suggested that by using emotive narratives or relatable characters, films can become effective mediums for delivering messages or reinforcing values -and in the public health context, have implications for how viewers might think about how to act and behave (Wald 2008;Ostherr 2005;Kendal 2021;Han and Curtis 2020a;Brown et al 2015;Nasiruddin et al 2013;Vidal 2018;also, in comics: McNicol 2017). These have been described in psychology as 'symbolic sense-making processes' (Wagner, Kronberger, and Seifert 2002).…”

Sensational Science : A Rhetorical Analysis of Public Science Education in Entertainment Programming

“…The extensively criticized deficit model of public science education forwards that mass media should be used to educate a supposedly scientifically illiterate public (Vidal, 2018b). To this end, film and television programming, both fiction and non-fiction, have served as vehicles for translating scientific knowledge to their audiences for the purpose of engendering trust in scientific authorities (2018b).…”