What led you to this article? A love for film? B.F. Skinner believed this wasn’t a choice but the result of psychologically programmed behavior. Skinner stands alongside Ivan Pavlov as a father of modern behaviorism. Yet, Skinner was interested in topics far beyond science. He wrote on the philosophical impacts of his discoveries, questioned free will, and became one of the most enigmatic academics of the 20th century.
When Skinner is interviewed on the idea of teaching machines, a revolutionary technology which foreshadows our modern world, he not only stands his ground but claims computers will one day be able to understand language. Skinner, nearly a century ahead of his time, could envision a world that politicians, talk show hosts, and Ma’ and Pa’ could hardly wrap their minds around. Yet Skinner would not use the word genius to describe himself in a documentary. From his own notes, a lesser word would be far more impactful.
Through the archival materials, tapes, and interviews compiled into B.F. Skinner Plays Himself, the documentary takes its audience through an intimate and behind-the-scenes glimpse of the famous psychologist. The film follows Skinner from his failed early career as an author to his radical research and the harsh reactions it received. The trailer from the film’s website reflects this intimate and raw perspective, featuring one long outtake of Skinner which reflects little of his life but speaks volumes about his person.
An archival interview included in B.F. Skinner Plays Himself sees one of Skinner’s Harvard peers comparing him to the likes of Copernicus and Darwin, scientists whose seismic discoveries shook the foundations of the human condition. Skinner’s forefathers broke the myth of mankind’s position at the center of the universe and robbed man of his physiological uniqueness. However, it would be Skinner’s revolutionary behaviorism that left the most unsettling mark. Hypothesizing that the human brain was formed through conditioning, Skinner’s conclusions shattered free will, telling the world, ‘even your mind belongs to science’. Much like Copernicus and Darwin, Skinner became the target of condemnation from the scientific community and mainstream media alike. Culminating from this, talk show host Dick Cavett introduced Skinner to the American public with the warning, ‘some people think he’s the devil himself’.
Making use of countless hours of footage from the Harvard archives, B.F. Skinner Plays Himself attempts to peel back the misconceptions that surround the enigmatic scientist-philosopher. The majority of footage in the film comes from a shelved PBS documentary, which Skinner himself had worked on, but ultimately canned as a result of creative differences. Upon reviewing these archived letters in which Skinner voices his criticisms to the PBS documentary crew, B.F. Skinner Plays Himself director Ted Kennedy became inspired to tell the story which he believes Skinner intended. Kennedy, combining his experience as an experimental filmmaker, incorporated a unique perspective into the film. Through the inclusion of many different types of footage from experiments, public appearances, and home-videos, the film synthesizes the different facets of Skinner’s life, complicating a man the mainstream had simplified as a radical behaviorist.
The original PBS footage was ripe with philosophically dense material, from Skinner's reflections on his wartime “pigeon-guided bombs” to an imagined discussion between the real-life Skinner and an actor portraying writer Henry David Thoreau. The short dialogue between the two shed light on Skinner’s book Walden Two, whose name references it as a kind of sequel to Thoreau’s Walden.
However, where the film truly shines, is the inclusion of materials never meant for the public. Opening the film with Skinner’s “rules” for filming for the PBS crew, Kennedy’s documentary asks us to understand Skinner through his actions. The film asks us not just to consider Skinner’s words, but his process of thought. A small timer running atop the frame for the entire film creates a fitting sense of experimentation. Pulling back the polished and intentional look of most documentaries, Kennedy includes audio outtakes, rolling takes, and private correspondence between Skinner and the PBS documentary crew. In this way, the film speaks as much in the mundane of Skinner’s internal life as it does in the exterior and commercial fame that accompanied his career.
In making this documentary, Kennedy not only highlighted a more truthful and holistic representation of Skinner, but also advanced the medium of documentary by displaying new and intimate ways of presenting biographical media.
B.F. Skinner Plays Himself will be screening on Friday, January 23, 2026 – Online for 24 Hours and In-Person at 7PM in Voorhees Hall #105/Rutgers University, 71 Hamilton Street, New Brunswick, NJ 08901! Director Ted Kennedy will be doing a Q+A with the audience at the in-person screening! Get more info and buy tickets here.
The 44th Bi-Annual New Jersey Film Festival will be taking place on select Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays between January 23-February 22, 2026. The Festival will be a hybrid one as we will be presenting it online as well as doing in-person screenings at Rutgers University. Most of the films will be available virtually via Video on Demand for 24 hours on their show date. VOD start times are at 12 Midnight Eastern USA. Each General Admission Ticket or Festival Pass purchased is good for both the virtual and the in-person when both are offered. Also, we will be offering two FREE Filmmaking Workshops! The in-person screenings and the filmmaking workshops will be held in Voorhees Hall #105/Rutgers University, 71 Hamilton Street, New Brunswick, NJ beginning at 1PM, 5PM or 7PM on their show date. General Admission Ticket=$15 Per Program; Festival All Access Pass=$120; In-Person Only Student Ticket=$10 Per Program. The Filmmaking Workshops are FREE and open to the public but have limited seating and require advance registration. To register email us at [email protected] For more info on the Film festival go here: https://newjerseyfilmfestivalspring2026.eventive.org/welcome
