Crime Science
Can face recognition in real-time stop human trafficking? Has science advanced to the stage when forensic geneticists can accurately pinpoint what a ‘person of interest’ looks like? And what’s it like to control Command Centre Ops during a simulated terror attack? .
These are some of the questions that this non-fiction anthology series seeks to answer with a mix of true-crime investigations, forensics casework, training exercises, and future technologies-on-trial.
CRIME SCIENCE premiered on CNA, Singapore in December 2019 and travels to Singapore, India, and the UAE to capture investigators, scientists, and technologists innovating together, one upgrade at a time.
DNA & Digital DetectivesDNA Detectives - A headless body is found in a Dubai desert. It spurs DNA detectives into action. Can they now use the latest in forensic genetics not just to identify the victim, but also create a sketch of her murderer whose DNA was found on her body?
A Million Points - In Singapore, a 6-year-old boy was crushed to death by a bus. Can the latest in 3D scanning help fatal accident investigators reconstruct the crash? Can they determine if the bus driver was at fault?
Eye in the Jungle - Poachers threaten a tiger corridor in central India. But what happens when AI finds its way into forest surveillance? Can it stop poaching? And what will it take to rig up an intelligent network in a forest, where there is no power, cables, or even connectivity?
Traffickers, Guns & VR Commanders Operation Little Angels - AI led face recognition is always going to be controversial. Specially when it's used in public spaces and by law enforcement agencies in countries like India & China. But what if it manages to identify children trafficked in real time and rescues them from the trafficker? The first story of this episode follows an anti-trafficking team to capture the impact of a pilot project where AI-led face recognition is being implemented in a Bengaluru railway station. How effective can it be?
Ghost Guns & Fake Prints - While 3d printed buildings are a fad in Dubai, 3d-printed guns and fingerprints are weapons of the future. Can a digital forensics team reverse engineer these weapons to identify the printer and its owner?
VR Commanders - In Singapore, VR simulations replicate emergency scenarios like terror attacks and car explosions to train Command Post Officers. But is it real enough?
Murders, Drug Hunters & Smart CopsDeath of a Journalist - A well-known Indian journalist, Gauri Lankesh is shot dead on her porch by unknown assailants - a blind murder with no witnesses! Will a mix of advanced forensic technologies help solve the case?
Illicit Drug Hunters - New, illegal drugs with ever-changing chemical formulations are a growing threat to Singapore. Will its forensic team of drug busters find a way to stop this proliferation?
Smart Policing - Dubai has the world’s first cop-less smart police station. They also have over 9000 street cameras, drones, hover-bikes, robo-cops, and one of the most advanced emergency systems, driven by Artificial Intelligence. But how intrusive is this surveillance? Is smart policing worth the cost of sacrificing privacy?
Accolades
National Winner - Asian Academy Creative Awards 2020The Asian Academy Creative Awards celebrate works from Australia & New Zealand, Cambodia, China, Hong Kong SAR, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam.
Nominated - Best Science Documentary at the National Science Film Awards 2020National Science Film Festival of India (NSFFI) is a flagship event of Vigyan Prasar, Department of Science & Technology, Govt. of India to celebrate the science outreach through cinema.
Behind the Scenes
Director’s Notes
.
Crime Science is a non-fiction procedural anthology that stands at the crossroads of crime-solving and technology. The 3-part series premiered in December 2019 on CNA and garnered excellent ratings for the English language trans-media Asian network.
As a journalist and filmmaker who has navigated several true-crime cases, I was always intrigued by the impact of science and tech in policing & forensics. And so, we decided to explore this in the form of a non-fiction anthology that deep dives behind-the-scenes to capture investigators, scientists and technologists innovating together.
However, you may be surprised to find that some of these stories don't feature cutting-edge science. Law enforcement (as we discovered) is not always the fastest sector to capture and harness path-breaking technologies. For instance, AI is much ahead in medicine than policing, or 3D printing is a generation ahead in construction than digital forensics and intelligent thermal cameras have been in the military domain well before wildlife surveillance. But what they lack, they make up for, with vision, impact and innovation.
The series reflects this spirit and is true to its academic namesake - an evidence-based, multidisciplinary approach to detecting, solving and reducing crime.
Crime Science is not a Minority Report or Black Mirror. Instead, it's a bold, reality check on the CSI effect that projects technology as a magic bullet. A real mirror that tells you what it is like to implement new techs on-the-field, its impact and challenges faced. It also helped that we were able to get onboard Interpol's innovation wing for their perspective.
As you watch these stories, you will realise that they are as much about science and scientists, as they are about impact. They are as much about innovation, as they are about constraints. They are as much about being procedural as they are about thinking out-of-the-box. Most importantly, they are as much about automation, as they are about being human.
We hope you enjoy the series.
Credits
Executive Producer | Creative Director
Graphics | Title Animation
Pachisframe
Line Producers
Namrata Chawla Kapoor | Apoorva Mehta
Assistant Camera
Sooraj Kulkarni | Ramu Gupta
Creative Producer
Additional Camera
Kiran Kunigal
Online
Special Thanks
Becky Lee | Parveen Singh | Valencia Seah, HSA | Ruley, HSA, Leena Rajan, HTA | Vanessa Too, MHA, Patrick Pang, SPF | Vanessa Tan, SPF | Clara Koh
Directors of Photography
Prashanth Karanth | Jalaj Kathuria
Assistant Editor
Aakash Vishwakarma
Graphics | Title Animation
Pachisframe
FOR CNA
Assistant Producer
Nadira Kasmani
Edit | Sound Design
Anupama Chabukswar | Rajdeep Mitra
Title Montage
Anupama Chabukswar | Rajdeep Mitra
Sound Recordist
Karan Soni
FOR CNA
Commissioning Editor
Huang Weixian