Best Documentary
The CRISPR Revolution: Hacking the Genetic Code
Gavriel’s time is running out. As a little boy he was still able to run and play football. Now
he’s 15 and wheelchair bound, and his muscles are getting weaker all the time. Duchenne
Muscular Dystrophy has so far been seen as incurable. But for the first time there are
grounds for hope because of a new tool from the genetic laboratory: ‘Crispr’ enables
scientists to alter the genomes of all living organisms faster, more economically and more
precisely than ever before. “Crispr" will revolutionise medicine, says paediatrician Ronald
Cohn.
He’s working in Toronto on a new therapy that could save Gavriel and thousands of
other children along with him. ‘Crispr’ can also be used to give plants completely new characteristics: resistance against pests or drought. In the US the first Crispr plants are already in the fields.
Even some organic farmers see new opportunities in the innovative breeding method and have doubts whether the total rejection of genetic engineering they’ve espoused till now is still justified.
Othersare warning about new dangers. They’re afraid of opening Pandora’s Box and interfering
with evolution. The new technology, after all, could not only cure diseases and produce new
seeds, but also create designer babies in the future.
For the first time, genome interventions are possible, which until now have been merely utopian dreams or horror scenarios.
Just how great are the opportunities and the risks? The film looks for answers in Germany,
the US and Canada. After more than a year’s research, visiting geneticists, physicians, patients and plant breeders, filmmaker Claudia Ruby reveals what is already happening in laboratories and clinics, in greenhouses and trial fields without the knowledge of the public at large. The film interviews both supporters and opponents, who are all agreed on one thing at least: an intensive public discussion is urgently needed. Because ‘Crispr’ can dramatically affect all our lives.
Director : Claudia Ruby
Published Jul 7, 2024
