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Mapping Stem Cell Research: Terra Incognita
As part of the dialogue on the relationship between faith and science, the Cathedral presents the Washington premiere of Maria Finitzo’s film Mapping Stem Cell Research: Terra Incognita. The film aired nationally on PBS on Sunday, January 20. Because of its immense implications, the debate over stem cell research has become more heated and nuanced with recent scientific advances. With the passage—and veto—of federal and state legislation regarding this research, a variety of questions have entered the national dialogue. What is the public need for this research? Who will have access to these treatments? Who will own the results of scientific breakthroughs? Mapping Stem Cell Research: Terra Incognita puts a human face on this controversial subject. The film lasts approximately 90 minutes. Filmmaker Maria Finitzo and leading bioethicist Cynthia B. Cohen will be the Cathedral’s guests on “Faith and Bio-ethics,” the February 10 session of Sunday Forum, a discussion of the issues of the day in the context of Christian faith, hosted by Cathedral Dean Samuel T. Lloyd III.
A long-time associate of the documentary company Kartemquin Films, Finitzo has also been a producer and writer for the PBS science series The New Explorers. Under the banner of her own production company, she produced and directed a variety of educational and broadcast programs including Whales, an episode of the National Audubon Society’s Audubon’s Animal Adventures, a children’s nature series for the Disney Channel. Finitzo also directed and produced a two-part special, On the Brink… Doomsday, for the Learning Channel and Towers Productions. She is currently pursuing her MFA at Northwestern University and developing her next project. |
Director/producer Maria Finitzo has been an award-winning filmmaker for 25 years. She has
directed and produced projects for network television, public
broadcasting and the cable market. Her work as a filmmaker has taken her
from the Galapagos Islands to Russia and has involved subjects ranging
from the command and control of nuclear weapons to the psychology of
adolescent girls. She produced and directed No Direction Home, a short
film produced in conjunction with Public Policy Productions, about young
people aging out of foster care. Her most well known film, 5 Girls, is a
feature-length documentary that delves into the hearts and minds of five
remarkable young women. The film was a special presentation of P.O.V.
and premiered on national public television in the fall of 2001.