The story is about how this particular piece of research ignites a huge media firestorm. It is the story of a scientist who studies hormones in sheep brains, specifically around sexual selection more colloquially and scientifically inaccurate in all kinds of ways, he studies “gay sheep.” These are rams that exclusively mount other rams.
Science & Film: What can you tell me about SHEEPISH?ĭaniel Hirsch: The script is inspired by true events but it is fictionalized. Science & Film spoke with Hirsch on the phone after the award announcement. In 2017, the script was awarded $15,000 from the Sloan Foundation’s partnership with Carnegie Mellon. Roselli worked with Hirsch on the scientific accuracy of the script. Understanding the biochemistry of sexual selection is crucial to understanding evolution. Carnegie Mellon graduate Daniel Hirsch was inspired by this story to write the feature film script SHEEPISH, which centers on both the public and private implications for an endocrinologist of his study on male-oriented behavior of rams.
Charles Roselli’s study of the mating selection of rams came became the center of a controversial public debate. Gay Sheep: Researcher Collaborates with Writer of Sheepish