The Life of a Nobel Laureate Neuroscientist

New film explores Eric Kandel’s life, from escaping Nazi-occupied Vienna to becoming a Nobel Laureate.

Published October 16, 2009

By Adrienne J. Burke

Imagine Science Films will screen the feature film In Search of Memory this evening in Tribeca. The film, directed by German documentary filmmaker Petra Seeger, blends autobiography and history to recount the life of Academy President’s Council member Eric Kandel, widely considered one of the most important neuroscientists of the 20th century. Based on Kandel’s autobiography of the same name, the story illuminates scientific developments in humankind’s understanding of the brain’s role in recording and preserving memory.

In addition to archival footage and dramatic re-creations of Kandel’s childhood experiences in Nazi-occupied Vienna and his formative years as an emigrant in New York, the film features discussions with Kandel, friends, and family. Footage from Kandel’s public lectures in Vienna and New York, which explore both his professional and personal life, are also included.

Kandel, a professor of physiology and cell biology at Columbia University, was awarded the 2000 Nobel Prize in Medicine for his groundbreaking research on the physiology of the brain’s storage of memories.

Also read: A Neuroscientist’s Search for Memory