---
title: How a UMD Researcher Helped an Oscar Nominee Take Flight
date: 2023-02-07T05:30:00-05:00
author: University of Maryland
canonical_url: "https://today.umd.edu/how-a-umd-researcher-helped-give-breath-to-an-oscar-nominee"
section: Articles
---
# How a UMD Researcher Helped an Oscar Nominee Take Flight

*February 7, 2023* — by [Chris Carroll](/author/chris-carroll)


> Documentary on Bird-Rescuing Brothers Has Already Won at Sundance, Cannes

*Feeding kites 1920x1080 — Black kites fill the skies of New Dehli, setting of an Academy Award-nominated film, executive produced by a UMD researcher, that tells the story of two brothers (photo at bottom) who rescue these and other birds of prey.*

Weighing whether the studio he runs should help produce a new film, Distinguished University Professor of Biology Sean B. Carroll knew that “[All That Breathes](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt16377862/)” would be a beautiful story about humanity’s responsibility to—and place in—the natural world.

He didn’t foresee that the documentary about two brothers who nurse injured birds of prey back to health in New Delhi would win its categories at the Sundance and Cannes film festivals and a host of rave reviews—or that it would have him pondering where to get a tux for the 95th Academy Awards next month. The film, which is up for best documentary feature, has its [small screen debut](https://www.hbo.com/movies/all-that-breathes)tonight on HBO and HBO Max.

“I could say it’s so unexpected that it feels like buying a winning lottery ticket, but it’s more like just finding a winning lottery ticket,” said Carroll, the Andrew and Mary Balo and Nicholas and Susan Simon Endowed Chair at the University of Maryland. “It has been a magic ride for all involved.”



*sean carroll headshot*



*brothers nurse bird back to health in their home*




**Topics:** [Arts & Culture](https://today.umd.edu/tags/arts-culture)


**Tags:** [Biology](https://today.umd.edu/topic/biology), [Research](https://today.umd.edu/topic/research), [Arts](https://today.umd.edu/topic/arts)


**Units:** [College of Computer, Mathematical, and Natural Sciences](https://today.umd.edu/topic/college-computer-mathematical-and-natural-sciences)