NASHVILLE, TENN. — The Belcourt Theatre takes part in the tenth annual National Evening of Science on Screen® on Tuesday, March 28 at 8 p.m. Science on Screen promotes scientific literacy through entertainment — and is an initiative of the Coolidge Corner Theatre with major support from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. The Belcourt’s Science on Screen® evening features a screening of the 1985 film, TAMPOPO, Japanese director Jûzô Itami’s cult classic tale of an enigmatic band of ramen ronin who guide the widow (Nobuko Miyamoto) of a noodle shop owner on her quest for the perfect recipe.
After the screening, Vanderbilt University’s Mark T. Wallace leads a discussion titled “A Multisensory World: How Interactions Between the Senses Shape Our Perceptions of Our World.” Dr. Wallace holds the Louise B. McGavock Endowed Chair in Neuroscience at Vanderbilt University. He is Professor of Psychology, Hearing & Speech Sciences, Pharmacology, and Psychiatry, as well as a member of the Vanderbilt Brain Institute, the Vanderbilt Kennedy Center and the Vanderbilt Vision Research Center. His work has employed a multidisciplinary approach to examining multisensory processing, and focuses upon the neural architecture of multisensory integration, its development, its role in guiding human perception and performance, and changes in sensory and multisensory function in the context of aging, autism, dyslexia and schizophrenia.
“The National Evening of Science on Screen is always the perfect opportunity for us to highlight the links between science and the arts, but this year we decided to take it a step further and use Jûzō Itami’s TAMPOPO and Dr. Wallace’s unique expertise to discuss the science behind how our senses interact to give us a holistic view of the world we experience every day,” said Zack Hall, Belcourt programming and education coordinator and in-house media producer. “This event will be a feast for all the senses as we watch this texturally rich and tantalizing film, accompanied with delicious yakisoba noodles by local purveyors Black Dynasty Ramen — bringing the smells and flavors of TAMPOPO directly to the audience for a truly one-of-a-kind ‘only at the Belcourt’ night of cinema, science and sustenance.”
The Belcourt has participated in Science on Screen since 2014. Science on Screen features classic, cult and documentary films provocatively matched with presentations by experts who discuss scientific, technological or medical issues raised by each film. The Coolidge/Sloan Foundation’s nationwide Science on Screen partnership seeks to inspire theater-goers with an increased appreciation for science, technology, engineering and mathematics as compelling enterprises and vital elements of a broad understanding of human culture and current events.
All information about the Belcourt’s screening of TAMPOPO, as well as tickets (both for the film and for yakisoba) can be found at belcourt.org/films/tampopo.
Additional details about the national Science on Screen initiative can be found at scienceonscreen.org, which also features archival program info, videos, venue information and grant guidelines.
About the Belcourt Theatre
The Belcourt Theatre is Nashville’s nonprofit film center, a cultural institution that engages, enriches and educates audiences through innovative film programming in our theatre, our community, and beyond. Housed in Nashville’s only neighborhood theatre, the Belcourt presents the best of independent, documentary, world, and repertory cinema 365 days a year, while promoting visual literacy and providing opportunities for people of all ages to experience the power of film. First opened in 1925 as a silent movie house, the theatre was home to the Grand Ole Opry from 1934-35. The theatre reopened as a nonprofit art house in 1999. The Belcourt Theatre is funded in part by Metro Arts: Nashville Office of Arts & Culture, the Tennessee Arts Commission and the National Arts Endowment, and is grateful for their support of our nonprofit mission.
About the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation
The Alfred P. Sloan Foundation is a New York based, philanthropic, not-for-profit institution that makes grants in three areas: research in science, technology, and economics; quality and diversity of scientific institutions; and public engagement with science. Sloan’s program in Public Understanding of Science and Technology, directed by Doron Weber, supports books, radio, film, television, theater and new media to reach a wide, non-specialized audience and to bridge the two cultures of science and the humanities. For more information about the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, visit sloan.org.
