Lost & Found at the Movies:
This is Your Brain on Movies

In conversation with John Nein, Senior Programmer, Sundance Film Festival
Date: Tuesday, Jul 9, 2019
Time: 7:30–9pm
Location: Mark Taper Auditorium-Central Library
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Reservations are available here.

If you’re already fascinated by movies from the standpoint of human behavior, consciousness and character motivation, try watching them with a neuroscientist.

With cognitive neuroscientist Dr. Heather Berlin (Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and host of Science Goes to the Movies) we take a journey into the human mind, exploring its relationship to cinema, in terms of complex characters, decision-making, dreams and the unconscious, addiction, artificial intelligence and the creative process itself. We also look at what cognitive science tells us about how we watch movies.

We check in (remotely) with filmmaker Ruben Östlund whose lifelong fascination with social psychology needs no further illustration than his body of work, which includes The Square (winner of the 2017 Cannes Palm D’Or), Force Majeure, Play and Involuntary.

And we pay homage to the glorious history of brains in movies, even the less cerebral ones (that’s you The Brain That Wouldn’t Die).

LFLA Members are invited to enjoy an exclusive reception following the program.

Lost & Found at the Movies is generously supported by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association

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Frequently asked questions

Dr. Heather Berlin

Dr. Heather Berlin is a cognitive neuroscientist and Professor of Psychiatry at the Ichan School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. Trained in clinical neuropsychology at Weill Cornell Medicine, she is currently a Visiting Scholar at the New York Psychoanalytic Society and Institute. With the aim of developing novel treatments, Dr. Berlin explores the neural basis of impulsive and compulsive psychiatric and neurological disorders. Additional interests include brain basis of consciousness, dynamic unconscious processes, and creativity.

Passionate about science communication and promoting women in STEM, Dr. Berlin has made numerous media appearances including on the BBC, Netflix, and NPR as well as co-hosts the podcast, Startalk All-Stars.


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Stacy Lieberman

As President and CEO of the Library Foundation of Los Angeles (LFLA), Stacy Lieberman is an innovative and inclusive leader whose career dwells at the intersection of arts and culture, lifelong learning, storytelling, and equitable access. Stacy guides the Foundation’s philanthropic and public-facing priorities to serve the Los Angeles Public Library, embracing the notion that libraries are beacons of democracy where everyone is welcome. She works intentionally with community leaders, donors, and internal and external strategic partners to raise awareness and resources for the Library and its life-changing initiatives.

With more than 20 years of experience as a senior executive, Stacy has left an indelible mark on iconic L.A. arts, non-profit, and educational institutions such as The Broad, the Autry Museum of the American West, and the Skirball Cultural Center. Building on an early career in book publishing, she has dedicated her professional life to sharing stories and broadening the reach of public institutions to welcome visitors and students of all ages and backgrounds to experience educational, arts, and cultural opportunities.