The communication format Science & Cinema: reflecting on representations of science in movies for joint meaning-making

The communica ion o ma Science & 1 Cinema: e lec ing on ep esen a ions 2 o science in mo ies o join meaning- 3 making 4 5 Hild un Wal e *, F i z M. T eibe , Hilma B ohme , Thomas B ude mann, Ul ich 6 Foelsche, Heide Be anek-Knaue , Lucas Ede , Ch is ina Maie , Helmu Jungwi h 7 8 ABSTRACT: We p esen ‘Science & Cinema, a science communica ion o ma 9 combining a cinema ic a mosphe e wi h scien i ic expe ise. By examining clips om 10 a ious mo ies, he o ma encou ages he audience o c i ically e lec on 11 ep esen a ions o scien i ic opics in ou popula cul u e. The e alua ion o p e- and 12 pos -e en ques ionnai es, along wi h a ocus g oup session, e ealed ha he o ma 13 appeals o di e en a ge g oups, en e ains, c ea es in e es , and os e s 14 unde s anding and e lec ion. By making images explici , he o ma shows po en ial o 15 con ibu e o he unde s anding and meaning-making o scien i ic opics ha a e 16 s ongly p esen in social discou ses. 17 18 Keywo ds: Science and Cinema; ilm; audience; ic ion; e lec ion; public 19 unde s anding o science 20 In oduc ion 21 In his p ac ice-insigh , we p esen ‘Science & Cinema (S&C)’ o he i s ime – an 22 inno a i e science communica ion o ma ha uses he powe ul isual language o 23 mo ies o anspo he audience in o popula concep ions o science and scien i ic 24 opics. The sc eening o ilm clips se s he s age o a scien is who analyzes he 25 anspo ed images and examines he con o mi ies and di e gences wi h es ablished 26 scien i ic ac s and esea ch. This o ma aims (1) o a ac people’s a en ion owa ds 27 science, (2) o p o ide deepe insigh s in o he espec i e scien i ic ield, and (3) o 28 engage he audience in a c i ical e lec ion on he ep esen a ion o science and 29 scien i ic opics in mo ies. He e, we p esen he episode ‘Science & Cinema: Clima e, 30 Collapse, Ca as ophes’ as an example o he implemen a ion o he o ma o he 31 opic o clima e change. We epo on he esul s o he concep e alua ion and 32 conclude wi h p ac ical ecommenda ions o designing u u e science communica ion 33 e en s. 34 35 THIS MANUSCRIPT IS CURRENTLY UNDER REVIEW! * all au ho s a e a ilia ed wi h he Uni e si y o G az; co espondence: [email p o ec ed] The ‘science communica ion as cul u e’ amewo k 36 Recen ly, b oade concep ions o science communica ion ha e been p oposed: Bucchi 37 and T ench (2021, p. 6) de ine science communica ion as “ he social con e sa ion 38 a ound science,” also ecognizing images and ideas ela ed o science in popula 39 cul u e. Ins ead o limi ing science communica ion by s ic s a egic and p esc ip i e 40 no ions, hey acknowledge he di e si y o o ma s and p ac ices and sugges hinking 41 o science communica ion as “encou aging he public o hink abou , espond o and 42 discuss science and i s ole in socie y” (Bucchi & T ench 2021, p. 5). 43 44 In a simila ein, Da ies and colleagues (Da ies e al., 2019; Ho s & Da ies, 2021) 45 a gue o concep ualizing science communica ion as cul u al in na u e. They conside 46 science communica ion as pa o he public communica ion abou science and 47 he e o e p opose ha ocusing on he meaning c ea ed by public s o ies can help 48 guide science communica ion p ac ice and esea ch. This cul u al app oach seems o 49 be pa icula ly help ul when i comes o equen ly deba ed opics in socie y, such as 50 clima e change. 51 52 I has been a gued ha clima e change is an especially challenging opic o 53 communica ion: i is abs ac in na u e, which acili a es psychological dis ance o he 54 opic (Spence e . al, 2012); poli ical pola iza ion and emo ional deba es aise 55 skep icism (Hahnel e al., 2020); misin o ma ion s eng hens exis ing misconcep ions 56 (T een e al., 2020), and lay people’s knowledge abou he opic is o en limi ed and 57 cha ac e ized by mul iple misunde s andings (Fische e al., 2019; Thalle & 58 B ude mann, 2020). In ligh o hese challenges, he e is a clea need o engaging 59 communica ion o ma s ha ecognize he ole o con e sa ions a ound science in 60 meaning-making. 61 62 The ep esen a ions o scien i ic opics in popula cul u e in luence ou indi idual 63 pe cep ions and sha ed concep ions abou science (Bucchi & T ench, 2021; Da ies e 64 al., 2019). S udies ha e shown ha clima e- ic ion ilms d aw a en ion o clima e 65 change, shaping ou unde s anding and emo ional esponses h ough dys opian 66 isions (e.g., Ha & Leise owi z, 2009; Lowe e al., 2006; Sakella i, 2015). When 67 de eloping a science communica ion s a egy, i may be use ul o ac i ely accoun o 68 hese science- ela ed cul u al de ini ions, depic ions, and s o ies p esen in ou socie y 69 (Ho s & Da ies, 2021; Sakella i, 2015). 70 Science & Cinema (S&C) 71 We designed he S&C o ma o a ac people’s a en ion o science using he 72 engaging powe o mo ies. In he landscape o science-audio isual engagemen , 73 o ma s di e in e ms o ilm gen es and in ol emen o expe s and audiences. Sci- i 74 nigh s a e sc eenings o ic ional mains eam ilms ocusing on en e ainmen , whe eas 75 cinema deba es ake up documen a y ilms and include e lec i e discussions wi h 76 expe s and he audience. Science ilm es i als and sci-a exhibi ions mos ly show 77 independen sho ilms co e ing documen a ies o a is ic ic ion. Film es i als mos ly 78 a e s uc u ed e en s wi h a ying deg ees o expe and audience in ol emen , while 79 exhibi ions a e usually disco e ed indi idually. 80 81 S&C akes i s own place wi hin his landscape showing clips om mul iple mo ies. S&C 82 episodes las a ound 90 minu es and a e o ganized in o i e na a i e blocks. Each 83 block consis s o a sc eening o hema ically cu a ed and compiled ilm clips ollowed 84 by a mode a ed discussion. In ou episodes, we in i e a scien is om ou uni e si y, 85 bu o he expe s in he espec i e ield (scien is s, science communica o s, science 86 jou nalis s) could ake on he ole o discussion pa icipan . The al e na ion o 87 sc eenings o 5-10 minu es wi h discussion no only p o ides clea s uc u e, i aims a 88 s imula ing he audience’s a en ion. Clip selec ion allows a ocused, ye emo ional, 89 explo a ion o he cinema ic ep esen a ion o he scien i ic opic and i s e olu ion in 90 mo ies o e ime. Whe eas ull-leng h ilms may be s onge in men ally abso bing 91 people in o he s o y (na a i e anspo a ion) and in iden i ica ion wi h cha ac e s, hey 92 may dis ac he audience om he opic a hand (G i in, 2017). Documen a ies be e 93 ep esen he na u e o science; independen ilms a e cha ac e ized by ealism and 94 challenging classical cinema ic opes (Felguei as & Ruão, 2025). S&C, howe e , uses 95 mo ies o in eg a e p ecisely hese cul u al images ha hey con ey. The mode a o - 96 scien is dialogue adds he scien i ic iew on he opics and e lec s how he images 97 may suppo o dis o ou pe cep ion o science. The pa icipa ing expe analyzes he 98 clips o hei deg ee o ealism, co ec s ac ual mis ep esen a ions, cla i ies po en ial 99 misunde s andings, and con ex ualizes he in o ma ion based on cu en scien i ic 100 knowledge. In he end, he audience is in i ed o join he discussion. The S&C o ma 101 is sui able o a ious disciplines, as long as he opic has been add essed in mo ies 102 o e ime. We ha e c ea ed a ious episodes co e ing opics o na u al sciences and 103 humani ies, e.g., o mic obiology (‘Zombies, mons e s and mu an s in science and 104 ilm’) o medie al esea ch (‘Mongols, monks, mins elsy: Wha medie al ilms like 105 Robin Hood and B a ehea e eal’). 106 The episode ‘Clima e, Collapse, Ca as ophes’ 107 We implemen ed he S&C concep o he opic o clima e change in he episode 108 ‘Clima e, Collapse, Ca as ophes’ (Figu e 1). P ominen clima e scena ios and hei 109 impac s build he i e na a i e blocks ice (in o an ice age), wa e (mel ing poles, sea 110 le el ise and loods), wind and ex eme wea he e en s, d ough s, and mig a ion; 111 co e ing i e o se en main hemes aken up in cli- i ilms (S oboda, 2016; excluding 112 p eclima(c) ic s ess diso de and an agonis s which do no ocus on impac s). Fo 113 de ailed clip desc ip ion and ilmog aphy see Supplemen a y File S1. The dense 114 p esen a ion in hema ic blocks makes he na a i es and anspo ed images explici . 115 Du ing a mode a ed discussion, he scien is examines hese images and esumes he 116 scien i ic pe spec i e 117 118 • Block 1 (ice): Clips show an ice age caused by he hal o he No h A lan ic 119 cu en due o global wa ming. The ice-p esiden admi s mis akes made in he 120 CO2 educ ion policy (The Day A e Tomo ow; Emme ich, 2004). This is 121 ollowed by scenes om Snowpie ce (Joon-Ho, 2013), showing an ice-co e ed 122 ci y in he USA a e a ailed scien i ic Ea h-cooling expe imen . 123 124 A e his sc eening, he mode a o asks he scien is abou he physical 125 connec ion o global wa ming and ice ages in geological his o y, and he 126 p obabili y o hem eoccu ing in he (nea ) u u e. 127 128 • Block 2 (wa e ): The squi el Sc a (Ice Age; Saldanha, 2006) causes a dam 129 b each o a mel wa e lake. Film sequences om AI, The Day A e Tomo ow, 130 Wa e wo ld (Reynolds & Cos ne , 1995), and Ha d Rain (Salomon, 1998) 131 al e na e, d ama ically showing he des uc i e powe o wa e . A.I. (Spielbe g, 132 2001) depic s coas al ci ies wo ldwide si ua ed me e s unde wa e due o 133 mel ed pola ice caps. 134 135 The scien is ou lines he connec ion be ween CO2 emissions and he mel ing 136 o he pola ice, he possible ex en o sea le el ise, and i s consequences. 137 138 • Block 3 (wind/ex eme wea he ): A o nado sucks a man ou o his bunke 139 (Twis e ; De Bon , 1996), ollowed by images o a ious ex eme wea he e en s 140 (deadly hea wa es, d ough s, hu icanes and o nadoes, sunamis) om The 141 Day A e Tomo ow, Geos o m (De lin, 2017), and Mad Max - Fu y Road 142 (Mille , 2015). 143 144 The scien is explains he F- o nado scale and whe he o nadoes can also 145 occu locally. I is discussed how ecen ly expe ienced se e e s o ms and hea y 146 ain alls ela e o clima e change. 147 148 • Block 4 (d ough s) s a s wi h a na a i e oiceo e om Mad Max 2 (Mille , 149 1981), whe e he ailu e o poli ics led o a pos -apocalyp ic wo ld, ea u ing 150 wa e sca ci y and dese s. Scenes om Soylen G een (Fleische , 1973) show 151 a wo ld di ided in o ich and poo , whe e co pses a e p ocessed in o ood o 152 o e come sho ages. 153 154 The mode a o -scien is discussion ouches upon dese i ica ion and i s 155 consequences, ood was e as sou ce o CO2 emissions, and o he li es yle 156 issues like excessi e wa e consump ion. 157 158 • Block 5 (mig a ion): In Sudan, a g oup o e ugees s a hei jou ney o Eu ope 159 due o sho ages in uels and c op ailu es. A young man shoo s a pis ol in o he 160 ai ou o joy a e a i ing on he Spanish coas and is hen sho by soldie s (all 161 clips om The Ma ch; Whea ley, 1990). 162 163 Conside ing ha The Ma ch p esen ed se e al social challenges ela ed o 164 clima e change as ea ly as 1990, he scien is men ions ha he e was al eady 165 a lo o scien i ic knowledge abou clima e change and possible s a egies o 166 ac ion a ailable a ha ime. He discusses he slow implemen a ion o clima e 167 policy in ela ion o scien i ic p og ess. To a oid lea ing he audience wi h 168 eelings o helplessness, he scien is in eg a es messages in line wi h he 169 concep o “cons uc i e hope”, like hinking abou ways o each a desi ed goal 170 (pa hway hinking; “Le 's ake eigh anspo as an example: anspo cos s 171 can be adjus ed so ha he absu d back-and- o h anspo o goods ac oss 172 Eu ope is no longe economically iable.”) o o s i e o ac i ely each hese 173 goals (agency seeking; “We ha e shown as humani y ha we can sol e 174 p oblems i we eally ecognize hem, like he p oblem wi h he hole in he ozone 175 laye .”) (Ojala, 2023). 176 177 Figu e 1: Concep o he science communica ion e en ‘Science & Cinema: Clima e, Collapse, 178 Ca as ophes’ wi h imp essions o he images used in mo ies. 179 Objec i es 180 We e alua e he S&C o ma wi h ega ds o i e ques ions: (1) which kind o audience 181 pa icipa es; (2) which impac does he enue ha e on he composi ion o he audience; 182 (3) wha does he audience expec ; (4) how do hey pe cei e he e en in e ms o 183 en e ainmen , spa king in e es , and scien i ic in o ma ion; and (5) wha a e he 184 mo i a ions and goals o he scien is engaged in he S&C? The in ended ou come o 185 he e en is o inspi e c i ical e lec ion on scien i ic opics and hei ep esen a ions in 186 mo ies. As an indica o o ini ia ed e lec ion, we examined how he e en in luenced 187 he audiences’ a i udes owa d clima e change ega ding conce n, isk pe cep ion, and 188 mo i a ion. 189 Me hods 190 The S&C e en was held wice: once in a uni e si y lec u e hall ha was open o he 191 public and once in a cinema as pa o a local ilm es i al (see Figu e 2). 192 193 We e alua ed he S&C o ma as ollows (1) a quan i a i e e alua ion wi h p e-/pos - 194 e en online ques ionnai es wi h he audiences, (2) a quali a i e e alua ion h ough a 195 ocus g oup a e he e en , and (3) a sho , w i en in e iew wi h he pa icipa ing 196 scien is . 197 198 199 Figu e 2: Imp essions o he wo S&C: Clima e, Collapse, Ca as ophes e en s aking place in a 200 uni e si y lec u e hall (1s ow) and in a cinema as pa o he ‘Science mee s Fic ion Fes i al’ (2nd ow). 201 202 P e-/pos -e en s udy 203 Fo da a collec ion, pa icipan s comple ed he ques ionnai es online (Supplemen a y 204 File S2). We ga he ed 62 comple e ques ionnai es a he uni e si y and 33 a he 205 cinema. The p e-e en ques ionnai e cap u ed pa icipa ion mo i es, expec a ions, 206 cu en knowledge, and demog aphics. The pos -e en ques ionnai e ga he ed 207 eedback on he e en , including whe he expec a ions we e me in e ms o 208 en e ainmen , in e es , and scien i ic in o ma ion. In o de o assess he o ma ’s 209 po en ial o ini ia e e lec ion, pa icipan s we e asked o which deg ee hey had 210 changed hei iew on clima e change in e ms o unde s anding, knowledge, isk 211 pe cep ion, conce n, and in en ion o ac . The ques ionnai es a e pa ially based on 212 an de Linden’s clima e pe cep ion ins umen (2015) and we e adap ed o ou s udy’s 213 que ies. The desc ip i e and quan i a i e da a analysis was ca ied ou in R. 214 Focus g oup session 215 To gain deepe insigh s and desc ip i e in o ma ion abou how he e en was 216 pe cei ed, pa icipan s we e in i ed o ake pa in a ocus g oup, which was only 217 ealized a e he uni e si y e en due o o ganiza ional cons ain s. I was held h ee 218 days a e he e en (see Supplemen a y File S3 o he in e iew guide). Fi e people 219 pa icipa ed, all be ween he ages o 24 and 34: ou om a mas e ’s p og am, one 220 uni e si y g adua e. S a emen s and conclusions a e he e o e based on a small and 221 homogenous sample. The in e iew las ed 100 minu es. Fo quali a i e con en 222 analysis, he in e iew was ansc ibed and coded in MAXQDA2022 ( o he ansc ip 223 and de ailed esul s, see Supplemen a y Files S4 and S5). 224 Resul s 225 The S&C audience 226 We obse ed di e ences be ween he wo audiences. Pa icipan s we e younge a 227 uni e si y: 65% (n=40) we e be ween 18 and 27 yea s old, whe eas a he cinema, 228 60% (n=20) we e be ween 28 and 45 (all da a ables a e a ailable in Supplemen a y 229 File S6). Pa icipan s we e balanced acco ding o gende (uni e si y: 53%; cinema: 230 52% women). 231 232 Rega ding educa ion le el, a he uni e si y, 39% indica ed A-le els, 32% bachelo ’s 233 deg ees and 23% mas e ’s deg ees, 3% indica ed a PhD, one compulso y school 234 (<1%). A he cinema, we obse ed highe alues in he ma ginal ca ego ies wi h 12% 235 indica ing compulso y school, and 15% holding a PhD. Also he e, mos pa icipan s 236 held A-le els (21%), bachelo ’s (18%) o mas e ’s deg ee (33%). We see clea 237 di e ences o he audiences’ a ilia ion wi h uni e si y (see Figu e 3): whe eas he 238 majo i y o he pa icipan s a uni e si y (77%) indica ed close a ilia ion ia hei s udy 239 o wo k, 73% o he people isi ing he cinema e en had no a ilia ion wi h uni e si y. 240 241 242 Figu e 3: Audiences' a ilia ion wi h he uni e si y di e en ia ed o he wo enues. 243 In bo h g oups, pa icipan s o en hink abou clima e change (uni e si y: 85%, cinema: 244 75%) and exp ess high conce n ( a ing 5 on a 7-poin -Like scale; uni e si y: 92%, 245 cinema: 87%). In he p e es , he majo i y indica ed high mo i a ion o pe sonally 246 engage agains clima e change ( a ing 5; uni e si y: 85%, cinema: 63%). Howe e , 247 o he cinema se ing, almos one hi d exp essed a he low mo i a ion (30% a ed 2 248 o 3). 249 Pe cep ion o he S&C e en 250 Pa icipan s mainly ound ou abou he e en ia pe sonal con ac s (uni e si y: 66%, 251 cinema: 55%) and o he cinema ia pos e ad e ising (27%). Social media, 252 newsle e s, and websi es played mino oles (< 10%). 253 254 Pa icipan s expec ed p ima ily in o ma ion (uni e si y: 89%, cinema: 88%) and 255 en e ainmen (uni e si y: 74%, cinema: 58%). Insigh s in o esea ch esul s 256 (uni e si y: 48%, cinema: 52%) and sugges ions o clima e ac ion (uni e si y: 35%, 257 cinema: 39%) we e expec ed a lowe a es. 258 En e ainmen and in e es 259 Mos people in he audience gene ally liked he e en (mean alue o he uni e si y 260 Muni = 6.18  0.95; mean alue o he cinema Mcin = 5.70  1.33; scale om 1 (‘no a 261 all’) o 7 (‘enjoyed i a lo ’)). They we e en e ained ( a ing 5; uni e si y: 83%, cinema: 262 63%) and showed high in e es ( a ing 5: uni e si y: 92%, cinema: 81%) (Table 1). 263 264 The ocus g oup session ein o ced indings ha he S&C o ma is able o link 265 en e ainmen and scien i ic in o ma ion (see also Table 2 and S4, pos. 265). The e en 266 e oked a ious al e na ing emo ions, spa ked in e es , and linked posi i e eelings wi h 267 he acquisi ion o knowledge (pos. 276-278, 369, 488-492). 268 Recommenda ions 414 Based on he e alua ion, we make he ollowing ecommenda ions: 415 • Main ain a balance be ween en e aining s o ies and scien i ic insigh s, and 416 co ec mis ep esen a ions. Gi en ha S&C audiences expec ed scien i ic 417 insigh s and en e ainmen a he han de ailed esea ch esul s, we ecommend 418 ocusing on gene al unde s anding o scien i ic concep s. 419 • Inco po a e e e ences o local en i onmen s o enhance he connec ion o 420 scien i ic opics o he sel and communi y, which showed high esonance in ou 421 ocus g oup discussion (e.g., o es dieback, Table 2). 422 • U ilize ilm na a i es o es ablish a connec ion wi h he audience and e oke an 423 emo ional esponse. When u ilizing emo ion-based messaging, make p uden 424 use o clips elici ing nega i e emo ions like ea and combine hem wi h 425 messages o hope and solu ions o p omo e emo ional low and mi iga e 426 maladap i e e ec s (Dennison, 2024; Nabi e al., 2018). 427 428 Based on he lessons lea ned om implemen a ion, we make he ollowing p ac ical 429 ecommenda ions: 430 • Selec e en enues and amewo ks acco ding o he a ge audience. Ou 431 esul s unde line he impo ance o o -campus e en s o acili a e access o 432 people om di e se backg ounds. 433 • Reach ou o acili a o s wi hin he communi y o you a ge audience o 434 ad e ise he e en o o pa icipa e as a discussan . Ou esul s showed ha 435 mos people engage due o pe sonal con ac s. 436 • Make su e o apply o ilm sc eening licenses while p epa ing you e en . 437 Conclusions 438 Ou pe cep ion o science and scien i ic opics is no only shaped by adi ional science 439 communica ion i sel , bu also by he cul u al con e sa ion a ound science as a whole, 440 including images and ep esen a ions con eyed in he media and ou popula cul u e. 441 Taking hese in o accoun may guide new app oaches in science communica ion 442 p ac ice, since we can make hem explici , examine hem, and encou age c i ical 443 e lec ion. This seems especially ele an in imes o in o ma ion o e load and 444 inc easing p esence o alse o misleading s a emen s. The indings om ou 445 e alua ion sugges ha he S&C o ma p esen ed he e is able o make he audience 446 ques ion hese images and o cla i y he scien i ic pe spec i e on he opic a hand. 447 Fu he , i is able o a ac in e es o bo h people wi h highe and lowe o mal a ini y 448 le els o science. We a gue ha especially o scien i ic opics ha a e s ongly p esen 449 in socie al discou ses, S&C can con ibu e o ou unde s anding, e lec ion, and 450 de elopmen o cul u al concep ions o science. 451 452 Re e ences 453 Bucchi, M., & T ench, B. (2021). Re hinking science communica ion as he 454 social con e sa ion a ound science. JCOM, 20(03), Y01. 455 h ps://doi.o g/10.22323/2.20030401 456 Busselle, R., & Bilandzic, H. (2008). Fic ionali y and pe cei ed ealism in 457 expe iencing s o ies: A model o na a i e comp ehension and 458 engagemen . Communica ion Theo y, 18(2), 255–280. 459 h ps://doi.o g/10.1111/j.1468-2885.2008.00322.x 460 Da ies, S. R., Halpe n, M., Ho s , M., Ki by, D., & Lewens ein, B. 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Jou nal o 555 En i onmen al Psychology, 41, 112-124. 556 h ps://doi.o g/10.1016/j.jen p.2014.11.012 557 Whea ley, D. (Di ec o ). (1990). The Ma ch [Film], BBC. 558 Open Science and E hics S a emen 559 This s udy was app o ed by he local Uni e si y o [anonymized] E hics Commi ee 560 (No. 2022/23/56). In o med consen o pa icipa e was ob ained om all pa icipan s. 561 Da a and ma e ials a e a ailable a he Open Science F amewo k eposi o y 562 (h ps://os .io/ahy /? iew_only=aab00304 900477cae9c3ce0b667ab3d). 563 Acknowledgemen s 564 We would like o since ely hank all pa icipan s in his s udy and [anonymized] o his 565 suppo in e en o ganiza ion. We also hank [anonymized] and he o ganiza ional 566 eam o he [anonymized] Fes i al o hos ing he e en a he cinema. 567