Event

PROJECT NIM

Documentary screening & post-film discussion with actor Bern Cohen and members of Nim's first human family. Moderated by New York Times "Science Times" editor David Corcoran.

Oscar winner James Marsh ("Man on Wire") tells the story of Nim, the "subject" of a 1970's experiment to see whether a chimp raised like a human child could learn to express thoughts and feelings through sign language. But the study was abandoned when the adorable, intelligent baby chimp became a less manageable adult, and Nim's later life was a tragedy worthy of Dickens. Using testimony from key participants, newly discovered archival footage and dramatic re-creations (filmed in Nyack), Marsh portrays Nim's extraordinary journey through human society and the unsettling truths it reveals about both Nim's true nature and ours.

Directed by James Marsh
With Bob Angelini, Bern Cohen, Reagan Leonard
UK, 2011, 93 minutes, documentary.