Ari Handel is an American

neuroscientist A neuroscientist (or neurobiologist) is a scientist who has specialised knowledge in neuroscience, a branch of biology that deals with the physiology, biochemistry, psychology, anatomy and molecular biology of neurons, Biological neural network, n ...

, film producer and writer. He is known for co-writing the films ''

Noah Noah ''Nukh''; am, ኖህ, ''Noḥ''; ar, نُوح '; grc, Νῶε ''Nôe'' () is the tenth and last of the pre-Flood patriarchs in the traditions of Abrahamic religions. His story appears in the Hebrew Bible (Book of Genesis, chapters 5� ...

'' and ''

The Fountain ''The Fountain'' is a 2006 American epic romantic drama film written and directed by Darren Aronofsky and starring Hugh Jackman and Rachel Weisz. Blending elements of fantasy, history, spirituality, and science fiction, the film consists of ...

'' with his Harvard

Dunster House Dunster House is one of twelve undergraduate residential Houses at Harvard University. Built in 1930, it is one of the first two dormitories at Harvard University constructed under President Abbott Lawrence Lowell's House Plan and one of the sev ...

suitemate

Darren Aronofsky Darren Aronofsky (born February 12, 1969) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. His films are noted for their surrealistic, melodramatic, and sometimes disturbing elements, often in the form of psychological fiction. Arono ...

and for producing these films along with four other films; '' The Wrestler,'' '' Black Swan,'' ''

Mother! ''Mother!'' (stylized as ''mother!'') is a 2017 American psychological horror film written and directed by Darren Aronofsky, and starring Jennifer Lawrence, Javier Bardem, Ed Harris, Michelle Pfeiffer, Domhnall Gleeson, Brian Gleeson, and Kr ...

,'' and its upcoming film ''

The Whale A whale is a sea mammal. Whale or The Whale may also refer to: Places Extraterrestrial * Cetus, a constellation also known as "The Whale" * Cthulhu Regio on Pluto, unofficially called Whale United Kingdom * Whale, Cumbria, England, a hamlet ...

'', based on Samuel D. Hunter's play of the same name''.'' He started co-writing the film ''Noah'' around 2003.

Early life and career

Handel grew up in a Jewish family in

Newton, Massachusetts Newton is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is approximately west of downtown Boston. Newton resembles a patchwork of thirteen villages, without a city center. According to the 2020 U.S. Census, the population of Ne ...

. He was born in

Zürich , neighboring_municipalities = Adliswil, Dübendorf, Fällanden, Kilchberg, Maur, Oberengstringen, Opfikon, Regensdorf, Rümlang, Schlieren, Stallikon, Uitikon, Urdorf, Wallisellen, Zollikon , twintowns = Kunming, San Francisco Zürich () i ...

, Switzerland, while his father was studying abroad, but he only lived there for about a year. Handel had an internship for ''

Nova A nova (plural novae or novas) is a transient astronomical event that causes the sudden appearance of a bright, apparently "new" star (hence the name "nova", which is Latin for "new") that slowly fades over weeks or months. Causes of the dramati ...

'' at WGBH, the Boston PBS station. He has a

PhD PHD or PhD may refer to: * Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), an academic qualification Entertainment * '' PhD: Phantasy Degree'', a Korean comic series * ''Piled Higher and Deeper ''Piled Higher and Deeper'' (also known as ''PhD Comics''), is a newsp ...

in neurobiology from

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then- Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, ...

. Torn between science writing and science education, he eventually became a film writer in an attempt to become a better communicator of science.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Handel, Ari 21st-century American writers American film producers American neuroscientists American male screenwriters Harvard University alumni Jewish American scientists Jewish American screenwriters Living people Mythopoeic writers New York University alumni Writers from Newton, Massachusetts Scientists from Zürich Screenwriters from Massachusetts Jewish neuroscientists 1957 births Film people from Zürich