Eyeworld Daily News

44 | EYEWORLD DAILY NEWS | APRIL 24, 2022 DAILY NEWS ASCRS ANNUAL MEETING T he ASCRS Film Festival is back after happening virtual- ly the last 2 years due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Not only will this year's Annual Meeting see the return of an in-person event, but it will also be a celebration of the 40th year of the festival. Shachar Tauber, MD, chairman of the event, talked about the Film Festival and his excitement about being involved. Dr. Tauber has been a member of ASCRS since the mid-90s, and he said the ASCRS Film Festival was hitting its stride at that time. "When you go to this event, you can see the quality of the production," he said. "The films are part of a beautiful transition to video and digital education, offering something additional to traditional textbooks, and it's something that we now take for granted." The films are also a way for phy- sicians around the world to bring new ideas to the attention of others in the field, he said. "They do it in such an excellent way that's part education and part entertainment." Dr. Tauber said that he has been fascinated by the event and the films for some time, and when he was first approached to become a judge, it was because of his experience in education rather than in video expertise. "It was a great honor that [then] chair Richard Hoffman, MD, asked me to do this," he said. "It was and continues to be the most rewarding part of the ASCRS Annual Meeting for me." Dr. Tauber said the previous year's judges will all return this year, rather than rotating as usual, in order to be able to attend the in-person event. "We're excited to have almost all the judges back," he said, noting that the event will still have a "hybrid" aspect, as the international judge, Minas Coroneo, MD, will be joining remotely from Australia. One of the things that Dr. Tauber thinks is most interesting about the ASCRS Film Festival is the way in which new winners may be based on past winners, the way that techniques and ideas can spawn updates or im- provements on videos from past years. "It's interesting to see where these films will go," he said. While some videos focus on new ideas, others draw from techniques or concepts that have been around for some time. Dr. Tauber also noted what a "joy it is to meet the physicians who put these films together for the meeting and to see the dedication they have to putting these films together for this purpose." At this year's event, there will be special recognition for the filmmakers who won awards in 2020 and 2021 and were recognized virtually at the time. Dr. Tauber said this is a good opportunity to further recognize those who took the time to submit their films during the pandemic, despite all the other hardships they were facing. This year's event will feature the same submission categories as in the past. "ASCRS should be congratulated on 40 years of this event," Dr. Tauber said. "It has survived all the changes. There are many doctors who submit and present their films year after year and are still going." ASCRS Film Festival celebrates 40th anniversary with return of in-person event "ASCRS should be congratulated on 40 years of this event. It has survived all the changes. There are many doctors who submit and present their films year after year and are still going." —Shachar Tauber, MD

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