Alexis Gambis

Alexis Gambis is a French-Venezuelan filmmaker and biologist. His films combine documentary and fiction, often embracing animal perspectives and experimenting with new forms of scientific storytelling. His second feature “Son of Monarchs” delves into issues of identity, (im)migration and evolution. The Mexican-American narrative premiered at Sundance in 2021 in the NEXT category and was awarded the Sloan Feature Film Prize. It received the Grand Jury Prize of the New American Competition at the 2021 Seattle International Film Festival. Screen Daily called the film a “a visually flamboyant film...a daring mosaic which floats like a butterfly.” 

Alexis founded the Imagine Science Film Festival that is celebrating its 14th year of showcasing the latest science filmmaking from around the world. Five years ago, he launched the sister platform Labocine, a virtual ecosystem showing curated science cinema online and sparking collaborations between scientists, artists and educators. 

Alexis’ TED Talk proposes a new manifesto around science and cinema, referred to as the Science New Wave, that celebrates diversity, hybridity and collaboration in scientific storytelling. He is currently working on his next feature “The Next Jaguar” that merges pressing issues about animal endangerment, climate change and indigenous rights.