Rhode Island Native Filmmaker Premieres on PBS:

Los Angeles, Calif. • May 1, 2024

Rhode Island native Levi C. Maaia’s first documentary feature is set to premiere on PBS stations in May as a one-hour special. “Pathways to Invention,” which garnered numerous “best of” awards on the film festival circuit, will air across the United States and will be available to stream in the PBS app starting May 1.

The program offers an in-depth exploration of the world of entrepreneurial inventors. Funded by the Lemelson Foundation and the University of California, Berkeley and produced by Maaia Mark Productions in association with the Lemelson-MIT Program, the documentary spotlights a range of inventive minds working in fields as diverse as biotech, sustainable agriculture, and software development. Through a series of engaging, upclose profiles, Maaia, the film’s director, examines the tangible impact these inventors are making across a diverse set of disciplines including biotech, medical diagnostics and prosthetics, sustainable agriculture, food production, software development and advanced mechanics.

“We all have the power in our minds and hands to shape the world,” said Maaia, co-founder of Maaia Mark Productions with Noah Mark, an award-winning, Los Angeles-based showrunner, producer, writer and director who has produced numerous series for a Who’s Who of major broadcast/cable networks and video streaming platforms. “The goal of ‘Pathways to Invention’ is to inspire others to think about new ways they can create solutions to benefit their own lives and humanity at large.”

"Pathways to Invention" was honored with the award for Best Documentary Feature at both the Southern California Independent Film Festival and the Los Angeles Independent Film Festival Awards (LAIFFA). At the LAIFFA, the film also garnered additional accolades: Mark and Maaia were named Best Producers, Maaia received the award for Best Director of a Documentary Feature, and the composers Michael Mark and Jon Cobert were recognized for their Best Original Musical Score.
Exploring an age-old question: Are inventors born or made?

Invention is more accessible now than ever through low-cost electronics, rapid prototyping and inexpensive global communication/collaboration. “Pathways to Invention” delves into the lives and careers of 12 winners of the Lemelson-MIT Student Prize for inventors. Now in the early to mid stages of their careers in cities across the US, these inventors share insightful stories and perspectives to help others discover the power of potential pathways and available resources.

The film’s journey through the workshops, garages, laboratories and offices of these accomplished inventors/entrepreneurs is narrated by David Moinina Sengeh, Chief Minister and Chief Innovation Officer for the Government of Sierra Leone. The inventor profiles are woven together through thematic pods that connect common traits including: perseverance, resilience, utilizing and becoming mentors, being open to collaboration, and understanding the impact of “nature versus nurture” on one's own pathway. The featured inventors include:
● David Moinina Sengeh, Chief Innovation Officer and Minister of Basic and Senior Secondary Education for the Government of Sierra Leone, who witnessed those around him struggle with ill-fitting prosthetics that were uncomfortable to wear, and designed next generation wearable mechanical interfaces that improve comfort for amputees.
● Nicole Black, a materials scientist whose experience growing up as a little girl grappling with hearing loss due to a perforated eardrum led to the groundbreaking formulation of a 3D-printed material – a near-perfect scaffold for the regrowth of human eardrum tissue.
● A Fulbright Scholar visiting Uganda, Paige Balcom was inspired to develop a small-scale community recycling process in Gulu employing street-connected, at-risk youth. This supposedly “impossible” initiative was the genesis of Takataka Plastics, where Paige now serves as co-founder and is currently working to expand to five towns across Uganda, and eventually scale to other developing countries.
● Since becoming obsessed during college with the programmability of living things at a microscopic level, Geoff von Maltzahn has raised hundreds of millions of dollars to date to fund groundbreaking biotech and life sciences research. Through the management of microbes and the DNA programming of organisms big and small, Geoff and his colleagues are focused on eliminating plant pesticides, creating drought tolerant crops, sequestering carbon, and eliminating disease.

Maaia was a student in the East Providence School Department and graduated from Moses Brown School in Providence, R.I. and later Boston University and Emerson College. He began his media career at Full Channel (now i3 Broadband) in Warren, R.I. where he became fascinated by the potential for technology to educate, and open a window on the world. From 2008-2015 he developed and taught a high school STEM program in Santa Barbara, Calif. while earning a Ph.D. in education at the University of California, Santa Barbara.

He is a private, instrument-rated, land and seaplane pilot serving on the Santa Barbara (Calif.) Airport Commission. He was a founding member of the ARISS-USA education committee, a NASA-sponsored outreach program aboard the International Space Station.

About Maaia Mark Productions:
Maaia Mark Productions is a Los Angeles-based film and TV production company focused on amplifying the voices of innovative people doing extraordinary things. By addressing systemic issues through individuals’ narratives, Maaia Mark showcases diverse contemporary innovators, artists, designers, and creators. Central to the company’s mission is spotlighting science, technology, engineering, art, and math (STEAM) and amplifying voices from historically underrepresented communities. Through engaging storytelling, Maaia Mark Productions aims to connect with a diverse audience, highlighting the social impact and transformative power of creativity and innovation. Learn more at www.maaiamark.com. 

About Lemelson-MIT:
The Lemelson-MIT Program is a national leader in efforts to prepare the next generation of inventors and entrepreneurs. Their work focuses on the expansion of opportunities for people to learn ways inventors find and solve problems that matter to improve lives. Its commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion aims to remedy historic inequities among those who develop inventions, protect their intellectual property, and commercialize their creations.

Jerome H. Lemelson, one of U.S. history’s most prolific inventors, and his wife Dorothy founded the Lemelson-MIT Program at MIT in 1994. It is funded by The Lemelson Foundation and administered by the MIT School of Engineering. Visit www.lemelson.mit.edu. 

About American Public Television
American Public Television (APT) is the leading syndicator of high-quality, top-rated programming to the nation’s public television stations. Founded in 1961, APT distributes 250 new program titles per year and more than one-third of the top 100 highest-rated public television titles in the U.S. APT’s diverse catalog includes prominent documentaries, performance, dramas, how-to programs, classic movies, children’s series and news and current affairs programs. Midsomer Murders, America’s Test Kitchen, AfroPoP, Rick Steves’ Europe, Pacific Heartbeat, Christopher Kimball’s Milk Street Television, The Indian Doctor, Legacy List with Matt Paxton, Lidia’s Kitchen, Kevin Belton’s New Orleans Kitchen, Simply Ming, The Best of the Joy of Painting with Bob Ross, Front & Center, James Patterson’s Kid Stew and NHK Newsline are a sampling of APT’s programs, considered some of the most popular on public television. APT also licenses programs internationally through its APT Worldwide service and distributes Create ®TV — featuring the best of public television’s lifestyle programming — and WORLD™, public television’s premier news, science, and documentary channel. To find out more about APT’s programs and services, visit www.APTonline.org. 

“PATHWAYS TO INVENTION” premieres on Tuesday, May 7 at 9:00 PM on GBH WORLD (Cox Ch. 807, FiOS Ch. 473 & i3 Broadband Ch. 988) and is available for streaming any time in the PBS app after May 1. Visit  www.pathwaystoinvention.org  for links, listings and details.