Scientists Under Attack: Genetic Engineering in the Magnetic Field of Money

Scientists Under Attack: Genetic Engineering in the Magnetic Field of Money (German: Gekaufte Wahrheit – Gentechnik im Magnetfeld des Geldes)[1] is a 2009 German documentary film by Bertram Verhaag. It alleges that the biotechnology industry was implicit in ruining the careers of Árpád Pusztai and Ignacio Chapela when they published research critical of genetic engineering.

Scientists Under Attack: Genetic Engineering in the Magnetic Field of Money
Film poster
GermanGekaufte Wahrheit – Gentechnik im Magnetfeld des Geldes
Directed byBertram Verhaag
Produced byBertram Verhaag
Written byBertram Verhaag
Music byGert Wilden Jr.
Edited byVerena Schönauer
Production
company
Denkmal Film
Distributed byDenkmal Film, BR
Release date
  • November 2009 (2009-11) (IDFA)
Running time
88 minutes
CountryGermany
LanguageEnglish, German

The film premiered at the 2009 International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam.[2]

Synopsis

The 2009 documentary interviewed three scientists (Árpád Pusztai, Nina Fedoroff and Ignacio Chapela) and an attorney (Andrew Kimbrell). Pusztai was a biochemist who went to the media with unpublished research claiming that a type of genetically modified potato suppressed the immune system and stunted growth when fed to rats. The resulting controversy led to him being fired from the Rowett Institute. Fedoroff is a highly decorated molecular biologist who is an external adviser to the US Department of State. Chapela is a professor at the University of Berkeley and Kimbrell is the executive director of the Center for Food Safety who sued the FDA in 1998 over its regulation of GM foods.

Reception

The German ARD cultural magazine "titel thesen temperamente" broadcast a 6-minute review about the film.[3] The Bayerischer Rundfunk described the film as committed, partisan and disputatious.[4] KinoZeit calls it an ambitious documentary.[5]

International awards

The documentary received 8 international prizes, including three for best documentary.[4] It won 1st prize at Indie Fest 2010 in the feature documentary category.[6]

References
  1. Scientists Under Attack - Genetic Engineering in the Magnetic Field of Money DENKmal-Film GmbH, undated, retrieved October 2015
  2. "IDFA showcasing 21 German titles". Cineuropa - the best of european cinema. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
  3. ttt (titel thesen temperamente)Bertram Verhaag über Gekaufte Wahrheit 6:38 min, ARD, 28 February 2011, retrieved 24 October 2015
  4. Bayerischer Rundfunk Gekaufte Wahrheit - Gentechnik im Magnetfeld des Geldes Archived 2015-07-24 at the Wayback Machine ARD.de, 9 January 2015, retrieved 24 October 2015
  5. Lida Bach Wahre Luegen kino-zeit.de, 10 March 2011, retrieved 24 October 2015
  6. The Indie Fest Winners July 2010 The Indie Fest Film Awards, undated, retrieved 27 October 2015


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