Jean-Baptiste de Panafieu presents himself as an author, director and scientific advisor, and his work is situated at the crossroads of cinema, writing and science. His goal is to serve the popularisation of scientific work and disseminate knowledge.

Born in 1955, he obtained a masters in genetics, before sitting the competitive examination for university professors in the natural sciences, to teach biology. In 1996, he became a doctor in biological oceanology, but he had already become involved in mainstream scientific writing from 1993, the year in which he also obtained an undergraduate degree in film. He stopped teaching in 1997, in order to devote himself entirely to writing and directing. He is the author of many books on nature and the sciences, often aimed for young readers, as well as documentaries for television. He has also devised educational exhibitions and board games. Between 1993 and 1999, he took on the role of scientific and pedagogical advisor during the expedition Les Enfants de l’An 2000, on the sailboat Fleur de Lampaul.

While his productions favour the informative aspect, they nonetheless do not neglect the aesthetic, thanks to the contributions of exceptional photographers. Thus, in Évolution (2007), photos of skeletons by Patrick Gries accompany the text, and L’Essence du Goût (2011) presents macro photographs of food, taken by Mathilde de l’Ecotais.

 

http://www.jbdepanafieu.fr