Science in Troubled Waters: Valley of the Saints

​Advance reservations are no longer being taken. Tickets may become available at the door on a first-come, first-served standby.

Followed by a discussion with writer/director Musa Syeed and scientists Richard Matthew and Mohan K. Wali

Dir. Musa Syeed. 2012, 82 mins. Digital projection courtesy of 108 Media/Paladin Films. With Mohammed Afzai, Gulzar Ahmed Bhat, Neelofar Hamid. Winner of the 2012 Alfred P. Sloan Foundation feature film prize at Sundance. Set on beautiful Dal Lake in the troubled region of Kashmir, Valley of the Saints tells the moving story of a restless young boatman and his budding relationship with an alluring scientist who is investigating the lake for environmental pollutants. Shot on location with local talent in the midst of a military curfew, the film inspires a follow-up discussion of how scientific insight can have a profound impact on vital ecosystems, and even help heal long-simmering conflict zones. The screening will be followed by a discussion with the film’s writer/director Musa Syeed; Richard Matthews, a professor in the Schools of Social Ecology and Social Science at the University of California at Irvine, and founding director of the Center of Unconventional Security Affairs; and Mohan K. Wali, Professor Emeritus in the School of Environment and Natural Resources (SENR) at Ohio State University (OSU) in Columbus, where he was director both of SENR and of OSU’s multi-college environmental science graduate program.

Tickets: $30 public / $18 Museum members. ​