Sundance Documentary Film Fellow Wins 2008 Peabody Award
MAPPING STEM CELL RESEARCH: TERRA INCOGNITA, directed by Maria Finitzo, received a grant award and creative and editorial support from the Sundance Documentary Film Program in 2006, and was selected for the Sundance Independent Producer’s Conference in 2007. We are excited to announce that the film has won a 2008 Peabody Award! The Peabody Awards Presentation ceremony will be held at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York City on May 18, 2009.
When the daughter of Dr. Jack Kessler, a respected neurologist, is paralyzed with a spinal cord injury, he enters the unknown territory of stem cell research, navigating its promises and its perils. MAPPING STEM CELL RESEARCH: TERRA INCOGNITA follows his complex journey through a scientific, ethical and moral landscape. Read more about the film and watch a preview at Independent Lens>>
Maria Finitzo has been an award-winning filmmaker for 25 years. She directs and produces films for network television, public broadcasting and cable television markets. She produced and directed NO DIRECTION HOME about young people aging out of foster care, and 5 GIRLS, is a feature-length documentary that delves into the hearts and minds of five remarkable young women. The film was a special presentation of P.O.V. and premiered in 2001. MAPPING STEM CELL RESEARCH: TERRA INCOGNITA was also supported by ITVS, produced in association with Kartemquin Educational Films and broadcast on Independent Lens.