‘Love Me’ wins Science-In-Film Initiative Feature Film Prize

L–R: Sara Crow, Lizzi Oyebode, Sam Zuchero, Andy Zuchero, Emily Everhard, Daniel Rafailedes. Photo: Courtesy of the Sundance Institute

The film stars Kristen Stewart and Steven Yeun, and centers on a buoy and a satellite that meet online and fall in love long after humanity’s extinction

PARK CITY, Utah — The Sundance Institute and Alfred P. Sloan Foundation’s joint Science-In-Film Initiative announced today that “Love Me,” from filmmakers Sam and Andy Zuchero, is the recipient of this year’s juried Feature Film Prize.

“Love Me” stars Kristen Stewart and Steven Yeun, and centers on a buoy and a satellite that meet online and fall in love long after humanity’s extinction.

The Zucheros received a total cash award of $25,000 and were celebrated at a reception hosted by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation in Park City. The winners also participated in a Sloan Foundation–sponsored event, The Big Conversation: Screen of Consciousness, where they discussed cinema’s portrayal of artificial intelligence.

The Sloan Institute CEO Joana Vicente said that the connection between art and science is ever-changing, and that the Science-In-Film Initiative’s Feature Film Prize winners are an example of how this relationship can be explored and uplifted in media.

“We are delighted to honor Sam and Andy Zuchero’s ‘Love Me,’ an original and wildly imaginative film about the nature of human identity and our connection to each other in a post-human world mediated through artificial intelligence,” said Doron Weber, vice president and program director at the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.

“Through the Science-In-Film Initiative’s Feature Film Prize and the artist grants, we are honored to recognize the artists pioneering how this relationship is explored and uplifted in media,” Vicente said. “We are thrilled to celebrate this year’s recipients and to have created a space to further discourse on this compelling topic at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival.”

The Alfred P. Sloan Foundation was established in 1953 and is dedicated to supporting research and development in science, technology, and mathematics.

The Sloan Science-In-Film Initiative was launched in 2013, and is partnered with the Sundance Institute and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. The initiative aims to use the resources of the Sloan Foundation to support projects that are exploring the intersection of science and art.

The Sundance Institute also announced the recipients of three artist grants aimed at supporting projects currently in development. Emily Everhard received the Sloan Episodic Fellowship for “Tektite,” Sara Crow and David Rafailedes received the Sloan Development Fellowship for “Satoshi,” and Lizzi Oyebode received the Sloan Commissioning Grant for “Inverses.”

The filmmakers received a total of $84,000 in cash awards and were celebrated today at a reception hosted by the Foundation in Park City.