Mapping Stem Cell Research: Terra Incognita

USA, 2007, 90 Minute Running Time
Genre/Subjects: Documentary, Educational, Political, Social Issues
Program: Documentary Films
Language: English

DIRECTOR: Maria Finitzo
Producer: Gordon Quinn (Executive), Maria Finitzo
Editor: Michael O'Brien, David Simpson
Cinematographer: Jim Morrissette, Ines Sommer

When his 15-year-old daughter became paralyzed from the waist down in a tragic skiing accident, Jack Kessler - the current chair of Northwestern University's Department of Neurology and Clinical Neurological Sciences – abruptly shifted the focus of his embryonic stem-cell research from peripheral nerve disorders to spinal-cord injuries in hopes of a cure. Mapping Stem Cell Research: Terra Incognita charts Kessler's efforts to unlock the mysteries of neural regeneration over the course of two years. His advances and setbacks, and those of like-minded colleagues, have helped spark nationwide debate about genetics and about the legal, medical and ethical concerns that shape public policy. Director Maria Finitzo – an associate of Kartemquin Films, the production company behind Hoop Dreams and Stevie – accordingly presents the controversy from a number of angles: doctors, research scientists, bio-ethicists, religious leaders and of course patients all weigh in on the promises of and implications for stem-cell technology.

Of course, Mapping Stem Cell Research also puts human faces on those afflicted with spinal-cord damage, showing them and their families in all their determination to rebuild their lives. Among Finitzo's subjects is Allison Kessler herself, at the time of the filming a Harvard undergraduate, coxswain for the men's rowing team and med-school hopeful. As we establish our own positions on the issue of stem-cell research, Finitzo asks us to consider the resilience and courage of the thousands of people like Allison who daily face the struggle to overcome as-yet-incurable disabilities.

In person – Maria Finitzo and Justine Nagan