'Blame' wins Best Documentary at the 7th edition of #LabMeCrazy! Science Film Festival

Lights, applause, and an audience that became part of the show. That's how the #LabMeCrazy gala kicked off ! Science Film Festival —the science competition organized each year by the University of Navarra Science Museum—where more than 600 attendees not only filled their seats, but also voted live, participated in a physics experiment (fluid dynamics), and even pedaled to the beat of the music on a stationary bike while awards and laughter ensued. At the helm were two scientists and comedians from "Big Van Ciencia," Helena González Burón and Oriol Morimon Garrido, who hosted an evening that lasted almost two hours and turned the MUN Theater into a laboratory of science, film, music, and humor.

The award best documentary went to"Blame,"a Swiss production directed by Christian Frei, which analyzes the COVID-19 pandemic from the perspective of three scientists who had warned in advance about the arrival of a global health crisis. The award for best television program went to the Canadian production "Sweat!" by Take Action Films; the award for best student production went to the British film "Orchids: Darwin's Conundrum"; the award for best work by universities and research centers research to "Arctic Shifts" by UCONN School of Fine Arts; while the best video on the web or social media went to the British production "Can You Fight Fires and Diabetes at the Same Time?." In addition, the award went to the production "Breathe, Mom." Meanwhile, Pedro Miguel Echenique, Full Professor Physics and award of the award of Asturias award (1998), was honored with the award Passion for Science" award .

The submission ceremony was attended by María Iraburu, president the University; Eva Perujuániz, general director of department Government department Navarra; Juana García, vice president of the Caja Navarra Foundation; Maitane Bueno, director of the Northern Zone of Laboral Kutxa; José Antonio Sacristán, director the Lilly Foundation; Yolanda Erburu, general director of the Sanitas Foundation; Javier Andrés Vázquez, student representative the School Sciences; Bienvenido León, director the festival; and Ignacio López-Goñi, director the University of Navarra Science Museum. 

The seventh edition of #LabMeCrazy! Science Film Festival received a total of 1,658 entries from 112 countries. The festival was partnership Caja Navarra Foundation and supported by the Spanish Foundation for Science and Technology (FECYT) / Ministry of Science, Innovation, and Universities, theGovernment of Navarra,the SACYR Foundation,Laboral Kutxa, theLilly Foundation, andSanitas.

Throughout February, the University of Navarra Science Museum has organized various scientific activities for all audiences in Pamplona as framework festival: screenings of the films nominated for the Golem Baiona Awards, a family workshop, lectures by scientific experts at Civivox Iturrama, and a colloquium university students with Toby Nowlan, director producer of "Ocean with David Attenborough" (2025), and a lecture Pedro Miguel Echenique at the University of Navarra.

“Blame,” award best documentary at #LabMeCrazy!

Christian Frei's Blame immerses viewers in the most tense months of the COVID-19 pandemic, closely following three scientists who had been warning for years that something like this could happen. The film does not remain on the surface of the health crisis: sample within how every piece of data, every press conference every public statement became a constant tug-of-war between scientific evidence, political pressure, and media noise.

One of the issues that does not go unnoticed by the viewer is seeing researchers grappling not only with science, but also with misinformation, conspiracy theories, and the need to explain complex truths in a world that demands immediate answers. With the pace of a thriller and sustained narrative tension, this film contrasts the patience of the scientific method with the speed of discussion , and leaves a clear conclusion: in a global crisis, the truth also needs defending. As Bienvenido León, director #LabMeCrazy! Science Film Festival, points out, "Blame" is "a very exciting documentary and thriller" that combines scientific rigor with great storytelling.