Are you looking to hire a Scientific Consultant?

B.S. in Marine Biology, University of North Carolina Wilmington 2016

B.S. in Environmental Science, University of North Carolina Wilmington 2016

M.S. in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, UCLA 2018

Ph.D. in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, UCLA 2023

I am soon to be Dr. Rutledge with a PhD in the ecology and evolutionary biology of animals. My PhD was very interdisciplinary and I collaborated with the U.S. Navy and Caltech's engineering department. I study the form and function of animals, specifically fishes, in hopes to inform bioinspired design.

I am an expert in taxonomy and systematics, the fields of naming new species and their evolutionary relationships. I discovered a new species of ray called a guitarfish in 2019.

I am also an expert in functional morphology and biomechanics, which is understanding why animals look the way they do (form) and how they do it (function). I have published papers in fish swimming, jaw biomechanics, morphology, habitat and environmental impacts, and fluid dynamics. 

Nope    Jordan Peele, 2022

I acted as the biology scientific consultant for Jordan Peele's movie "Nope." I helped provide design inspiration for the creature in the movie, created the scientific Latin name for the creature, and wrote a complete ~20 page scientific manuscript as bonus materials for the movie. The purpose of this manuscript was to debut this new creature to the world as a new species to science and I replicated every aspect of a real scientific paper. In the manuscript, I crafted a scientific narrative around the discovery described in the movie and carefully described the anatomy, behavior, and ecology of this fictional creature. 

Hiring a scientific consultant for film and media can help to ground your project in reality, It is not uncommon for movies to have some sort of scientific consultant to "fact-check" and avoid physics faux pas. I definitely have the expertise to do this, but where I really shine as a scientific consultant is my ability to bring your vision to life, to help create authentic stories, and provide sources of inspiration that enable you to create something unique. I hope to act as a sounding board for your creative process, and bring source material rooted in science that you wouldn't have encountered from a simple Google search. I am also an excellent communicator and have won awards in science communication specifically. 

Thinking about hiring a scientific consultant for your next project?

Please don't hesitate to reach out through the contact form below!